Bidzina Ivanishvili Drops “Faith” Hint About the Planned Constitutional Change
Bidzina Ivanishvili addressed the crowd in the western Georgian town of Ambrolauri in the Racha region on August 25 as a part of the election campaign. As previously in Mtskheta, he spoke from behind the bullet-proof glass, unlike his other party comrades. Eyewitnesses reported a heavy police presence on the roads leading to Racha from West Georgia.
Ivanishvili’s speech was almost identical to what he delivered in Mtskheta last week. Ivanishvili once again framed the upcoming elections as a referendum in which “the idea of national sovereignty and traditional values” will inevitably win. He said the “foreign agents” in the within the “radical opposition” are seeking power, which, he warned, means “dragging the country into war, economic hardship, famine, more deaths, and more occupied territories.”
He laid out the ruling party’s ambition for a constitutional majority, which he said would be necessary to ban the opposition (“collective UNM), pass homophobic legislation (“protecting minors and family values”), and prepare the ground for the restoration of Georgia’s territorial integrity.
Ivanishvili also mentioned that the fourth reason, which the party declined to elaborate on so far, will be “of existential importance for our state and faith.” Several observers speculated that GD plans to give Orthodox Christianity Constitutional status as the state religion. The current Constitution notes the “special historical role” of the Orthodox Christian Church, while the separate constitutional law establishes privileged relations with it.
Ivanishvili said in passing that Georgia must become a member of the European Union, but that should happen once “the country is saved” and “while safeguarding the national dignity.”
Shovi Tragedy
As Ivanishvili was speaking in Racha, he recalled a tragic landslide that occurred in Shovi last August, which claimed more than thirty lives. “Unfortunately, I have to mention the collective UNM again,” Ivanishvili said. He said that the “collective” UNM “once again “showed its true face” when it “started thinking about political interests and looking for the government’s wrongdoing in the natural disaster when we had not even recognized what [tragedy] was upon us.”
Several scientists said in the wake of the tragedy that the early warning system could have averted the worst in Shovi. These comments were met by the GD accusations of them serving the “collective UNM.” Investigative media representatives were harassed by the police. The Institute of Earth Sciences at Ilia State University recently published a comprehensive study confirming their initial assessment. The scientist implicated in the research was later questioned by the security services.
“On October 26, we will definitely win, and together we will continue to make the Georgian dream come true,” concluded Ivanishvili.
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