Davit Gamkrelidze, leader of the New Rights Party – part of the eight-party bloc, and Shalva Natelashvili, leader of the Labor Party, said they would consider entering Parliament if the authorities annulled election results in constituencies where, they said, the elections had been “totally rigged.”
If done, Gamkrelidze said the number of seats held by the ruling party would decrease below 100, leaving the National Movement without a constitutional majority. According to current official results the ruling party will have about 120 seats in the 150-member parliament.
Gamkrelidze said that the proposal was his own initiative and did not represent the official position of the eight-party bloc.
“I think this would be a kind of compromise in the current situation,” Gamkrelidze said at a news conference on June 2. “I think there is something rational in this proposal… The authorities and their puppet Central Election Commission should annul the results in all those districts were the elections were totally rigged – Ninotsminda, Akhalkalaki, Akhaltsikhe, Marneuli, etc. If that happens, the percentage received by the ruling party will go down and the opposition parties’ percentage will go up and instead of having 30 seats the opposition may have about 60 in that case.”
“[If the proposal is acceptable for the authorities] I will ask other opposition parties: maybe it would be worth continuing our struggle from inside the parliament, rather than from outside.” Gamkrelidze added.
Some representatives of the bloc, however, have already said that the proposal was unacceptable. “I do not think any party within the bloc would agree on that proposal. We have been fighting for change of the government and not for several mandates,” Jondi Bagaturia, the leader of Georgian Troupe party – part of the bloc, said.
In a separate development, Natelashvili said on June 2 that his party would enter Parliament if the results from the Samtskhe-Javakheti region were annulled.
Davit Bakradze, who is slated to become the new chairman of the parliament, however, has already rejected the proposals.
“This type of trade-off is totally unacceptable,” Bakradze said. “Not a single district will be annulled if there are no violations. Voters have cast their ballots there and no one has the right to annul results just for political trade-off purposes.”
Three political groups – apart from the National Movement – cleared the 5% threshold and consequently have the right to take seats in the new parliament. The Labor Party and the eight-party opposition bloc have said they will boycott Parliament and stage protest rallies in support of repeat parliamentary elections. The third one – the Christian-Democratic Party – has yet to make its position clear.
The eight-party opposition bloc and the Labor Party have called for a large-scale protest rally on the day the newly elected parliament is set to convene for the first time. The opposition has warned that it plans to block the parliament building so as to prevent ruling party MPs gaining access.
There has been some recent media speculation of a rift within the eight-party bloc over tactics.
Konstantine Gamsakhurdia, leader of the Freedom Party – part of the eight-party opposition bloc – said in an interview with the Georgian newspaper Versia (Version), published on June 2, that although he agreed with the boycott of the new parliament, “I will myself decide when to annul my MP mandate."
He also said he thought “the united opposition project – to run in the election on a joint ticket has already come to an end.” He, however, sidestepped a question on whether his party planned to quit the bloc.
Kakha Kukava of the Conservative Party – also part of the eight-party bloc – acknowledged in an interview with the same newspaper that there was “a certain level of hesitation in some parties” over the boycott.
Meanwhile, Alexandre Lomaia, the secretary of the National Security Council, has said the state will not allow anyone to hinder the activities of the newly elected parliament.
“The law will be applied against those trying to block the parliament,” he said in an interview with the weekly Kviris Palitra, published on June 2. “If they commit a crime requiring punishment, they will be detained. Will it be necessary to use force? – The state will use force and such people will be arrested. I take this opportunity to inform your [the newspaper’s] numerous readers about this, as well as those who may have such ideas.”
President Saakashvili has also warned that no one should have any “illusion that one can create problems for the authorities.” “The authorities are very strong, but we should not cross the line, over which problems will be created for our country, as a whole,” Saakashvili said on May 30.
In accordance with the law, the first session of the newly elected parliament should be convened no later than June 10, while the Central Election Commission is obliged to summarize election results before June 8.
