Bakradze Says Early Elections Ruled Out

Holding of early elections is something which the authorities and the opposition will “never” agree on, Davit Bakradze, the parliamentary chairman, said on May 4.

“The issue of early elections is not under consideration,” Bakradze said. “There may be some issues, on which we will have radically different opinions with the opposition and we will never agree on them; holding of early elections is among them.”

“Some leaders among the radical opposition are emerging, whose statements indicate that they are ready for a dialogue,” he said. “If at least one part of radical opposition shares the authorities’ proposal to launch institutional reforms in order to make these reforms a basis on which we will build our dialogue, we will only welcome it and there is full readiness on our side to launch these reforms.”

Bakradze was speaking at a session of the parliamentary bureau, a body uniting senior lawmakers, which gathers on weekly basis to determine the Parliament’s working schedule. The session was held in the town of Gori, instead of the Parliament. No parliamentary session has been held since the launch of protests rallies on April 9 and some of the parliamentary committee sittings were held outside Tbilisi since then. The ruling party officials say that the move aims at preventing a direct contact between the lawmakers and protesters outside the Parliament.

Meanwhile, the opposition parties, organizing the ongoing protests, said in a joint statement that they plan to mount pressure on the authorities through “picketing” of a key east-west highway in the country.

They said on Monday that traffic will be blocked on the highways for an hour – from 4pm to 5pm local time on May 5 – at three locations: at Tbilisi’s entrance from eastern Georgia; at the Tbilisi entrance from western Georgia and the highway linking Tbilisi with the town of Rustavi and southern region of Kvemo Kartli.
 
“And on May 8 picketing will take place on the central highways in the provinces,” the statement reads. “On May 8, during the picketing of [the highway] Saakashvili will be given a 72-hour long ultimatum to meet the people’s demand about his resignation and about launch of a dialogue with the opposition about peaceful and constitutional transition of power. In case of refusal to meet the demand a picketing with cars will take place on the central highway starting from May 11; exact locations of picketing will be announced on May 10.”

Gubaz Sanikidze of the National Forum opposition party told protesters outside the Parliament later on May 4, that the move would create “certain inconveniences, but on the other had there are lost territories, the President with weak mind and ruined country; so we have to bother ourselves.”

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