New Rights See Ruling Party’s Hand in Opposition ‘Split’
Parliamentarians from the opposition New Rights party argue that a decision by their former coalition member party – the Industrialists – to quit the coalition and form a separate parliamentary faction was inspired by the ruling National Movement party, which, as the New Rights claim, is trying to weaken opposition forces in the Parliament.
Leader of the Industrialists party MP Zurab Tkemaladze said on February 2 that this decision to form a new faction is a tactical step aiming at further “strengthening the parliamentary opposition,” citing that a separate faction means the “gain of additional seats in the [parliamentary] bureau, committees and commissions.”
But MP Mamuka Katsitadze of the New Rights party told the Georgian daily Rezonansi (Resonance) that “a new faction will apparently be a satellite of the ruling party.”
A coalition of the New Rights and Industrialists – the Rightist Opposition – which before the split united 17 parliamentarians, was able to win seats in the Parliament during 2004 parliamentary elections.
Speculations about this anticipated split began after MP Tkemaladze said last week that he sees no danger in selling the country’s trunk gas pipeline to the Russian gas giant Gazprom. The New Rights strongly opposes privatization of the pipelines.
