Election Platform of the NDP-Traditionalists

The election bloc NDP-Traditionalists unites two oldest parties in Georgia National-Democratic Party (NDP), led by Bachuki Kardava and the Traditionalists Union, led by Akaki Asatiani.

During the November 2 parliamentary elections the Traditionalists formed a bloc with the Burjanadze-Democrats and played one of the leading roles in the November Rose Revolution.

However, after the revolution the Traditionalists opposed Mikheil Saakashvili’s nomination as a presidential candidate and preferred to stay in opposition to the new government.

The National-Democratic Party was in ex-President Shevardnadze’s election bloc during the November 2 parliamentary elections. In order to distance itself from the previous government and the President, NDP dismissed the Chairman of the party Irina Sarishvili-Chanturia and elected new leader Bachuki Kardava.

The election platform of the election bloc focuses on the country’s administrative arrangement, liberalization of taxes, integration into Euro-Atlantic structures and reformation of the armed forces.

The issue of territorial-administrative arrangement of the country has been pushed forward by the Traditionalists for a long time in vain. According to the proposal the country should divide into regions. Simultaneously, two chamber parliaments should be set up. The upper branch of the Parliament will be composed by the representatives from the regions, according to the proposal.

One of the leaders of NDP-Traditionalists bloc Irakli Melashvili says, “the Head of the regions will be elected by the local self-governance body and approved by the President of the country.”

The NDP-Traditionalists election platform’s foreign policy priorities include Georgia’s withdrawal from the Commonwealth of Independent States; pull out of Russian military bases from Georgia; accession into North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

The special focus is made on integration of the South Caucasian states. Irakli Melashvili said that the NDP-Traditionalists would seek for closer ties between Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan and creation of the South Caucasian Parliamentary Assembly.

“We also propose to harmonize legal base of three countries, which will further boost the region’s integration into the European structures; also development of the joint economic projects,” he added.

The economic part of the platform focuses on liberalization of the taxes. “We want, for example a value added tax to be reduced from 20% to 6-12%,” Irakli Melashvili says.

In regard of the restoration of the territorial integrity, particularly concerning breakaway Abkhazia, the NDP-Traditionalists offer three-step action plan: establishment of the treaty based relations with Abkhazia, return of internally displaced persons and restoration of the railway link between Russia and Georgia via Abkhazia.

The bloc leaders say that reformation of the country’s armed forces is also one of their priorities. According to their election platform, the current funding which makes 0,69% of GDP should gradually increase up to 4% in next four years.

The NDP-Traditionalists also propose to reduce compulsory military service from 18 to 6 months. Georgia has once already reduced compulsory military service from 24 to 18 months, due to the lack of funding.

The bloc also emphasizes of preservation and further promotion of Georgia’s national values and focuses on Georgian language and Orthodox Christianity, which is a dominant religion in the country.

“Increase of funding for the special programs, which considers teaching of the Georgian language in the regions predominately populated by the ethnic minorities, is very important in this regard,” Irakli Melashvili says.

The NDP-Traditionalists also push the issue of signing an agreement with the Georgian Orthodox Church, which would consider return of the property previously owned by the Orthodox Church and now under the state’s ownership.

Political analysts say that the NDP-Traditionalists’ foreign policy and economic priorities are mainly similar to those of other rightists parties, including the ruling National Movement-Democrats. However, as an influential legal expert Davit Usupashvili says the NDP-Traditionalists’ platform is better structured then those of other parties.

“When you read their platform you understand what the NDP-Traditionalists want to do,” Davit Usupashvili told Civil Georgia.