Public Defender Criticizes Some Diplomats for ‘Double Standards’

Public Defender, Sozar Subari, said that “some ambassadors” in Tbilisi had “a double-standard approach” while dealing with ongoing political developments in the country.
 
He said that while making statements about the June 12 incident, which took place outside the Parliament, describing it as “an insult of democracy” – a reference to the French ambassador’s statement – “they make no comments” about the June 15 incident outside the Tbilisi police headquarters.
 
“This is a clear example of double standards… Some of the ambassadors here have clear double-standard approach and this is not a right approach,” Subari said while speaking at the Maestro TV’s program on June 17. “Throwing eggs and stones it’s not about democracy; it is hooliganism and the state should react on that and the state has reacted… Protesters were besieged [by the police on June 15 outside the Tbilisi police headquarters] and brutally beaten up. That is exactly what requires to be assessed. And it is very strange that diplomats are making assessments about issues like where a protester can install his tent and whether throwing of a stone is a democracy or not. We all remember riots in France few years ago when cars were burnt down and shops raided; that was not about democracy; this is hooliganism which should be appropriately responded by the state.”

The statement released by the U.S. embassy in Tbilisi also condemned “assault against members of Parliament” and said that those attacks “crossed a line from free expression of opinion to criminal activity,” calling on protest leaders “to stop these attacks immediately.” The Czech ambassador, Ivan Jestrab, was the first among western diplomats in Tbilisi to condemn the incident shortly after it took place and British ambassador, Denis Keefe, said he agreed with the statements of his Czech, French and U.S. colleagues. 
 
Tina Khidasheli of the Republican Party, part of Alliance for Georgia, said on June 18 that after condemning the June 12 incident, the western diplomats – and she especially focused on the U.S. ambassador – should also condemn the June 15 incident outside the police headquarters. 

“I demand from Mr. [John] Tefft [U.S. ambassador] to make a statement about the June 15 events; I demand from him to condemn and to call it what has happened on June 15 by its name. The statement that the opposition ‘crossed a line’ was perceived by Saakashvili as a green light for continuation of violence and it requires to be responded by the international community and we are now working on that direction and I hope to have results,” she said.
 
In separate remarks Tina Khidasheli said few days ago, while speaking on the same matter: “I am not sure that Mr. Tefft is reporting back to Washington about developments in Georgia properly.”

Tina Khidasheli also said that EU’s special envoy for South Caucasus, Peter Semneby, made “the most appropriate” statement while commenting on the June 12 incident. Semneby said in an interview with the RFE/RL Georgian service that the opposition leaders should explain to their supporters that actions of that type, which took place outside the parliament, were unacceptable. He, however, also said that arrests of opposition activists in the current situation might further complicated the political situation. The European diplomat also said that there had been cases of attacks on opposition activists and those cases should also be investigated by the authorities.
 
Irakli Alasania, leader of Alliance for Georgia, said on June 17 while speaking to an audience at the Brookings Institution, that “some of the criticism” voiced by the opposition politicians towards some of the western ambassadors “is founded on the unbalanced way some of the diplomats actually approached” recent developments.

Alasania also said that “people expect that diplomats also be that decisive in condemning” attacks on protesters.

This post is also available in: ქართული (Georgian) Русский (Russian)