“United Neutral Georgia” Accuses Opposition of Espionage, Supports GD Investigative Commission Initiative
The public movement United Neutral Georgia, founded in July 2024 and known for its pro-government and anti-Western stance, expressed support for ruling Georgian Dream party’s intention to establish parliamentary investigative commission to probe into the alleged crimes of the United National Movement, and proposed to further expand its mandate. The movement claimed investigating only activities of UNM in 2003-2012 is “insufficient to eliminate all problems that the Georgian state is facing” and requested to investigate the four main political parties alleging they represent “the spy network operating Georgia.”
In its statement, the United Neutral Georgia endorsed the commission’s stated goal to “examine the crimes committed by representatives of the United National Movement (UNM) and evaluate their governance”. The movement claimed that addressing these alleged transgressions is crucial, asserting that “without observing this principle, Georgia will never be able to exist as a full-fledged democratic state with a functioning political system.”
United Neutral Georgia’s post leveled serious allegations against opposition parties, accusing them of maintaining a “spy network.” The movement claimed this network— “composed of four radical opposition parties” —has kept the country “in a state of constant flux,” undermined “the perception of the state,” and facilitated “the legalization of espionage.” The group announced plans to file a formal complaint in that regard with the Prosecutor General’s Office in the coming days against specific political figures it deems responsible for these activities.
Among those accused of being “spies” former President Mikheil Saakashvili and opposition leaders, such as Nika Gvaramia, leader of the Coalition for Change; Mamuka Khazaradze, leader of Strong Georgia; and Giorgi Gakharia, leader of Gakharia for Georgia. The movement declared that “the place of spies is not in politics, but in penitentiary institutions,” framing this as an “unconditional requirement of the rule of law.”
The statement further asserted that Georgia’s path to overcoming political polarization and establishing a healthy democratic system hinges on purging its political landscape of so-called spies. “Overcoming the so-called polarization, establishing a healthy democratic system, and ensuring the country’s national security in the long term is possible only if the country’s political system is completely freed from spies and only national political forces oriented towards the interests of their own people are represented in it,” the statement read.
This is not the first time that the movement demands the crackdown on opposition, as it made similar statements prior to October 26 parliamentary elections and even proposed prosecuting voters for the “United National Movement”. The movement said in its October 15, 2024 statement: “At least this time we must manage to get to the root of the problem and the evil and eradicate it. The root of the problem, as we have seen, is each and every ordinary voter who, during this period, has supported and kept alive the metastasis of society, the [United] National Movement in general.”
The United Neutral Georgia movement, which often echoes narratives of the ruling Georgian Dream party, was founded on 10 July, 2024. Its founders are Nana Kakabadze and Gela Nikolaishvili, members of the organization “Former Political Prisoners for Georgia”; Vato Shakarishvili, former member of Georgian Dream youth wing; Bidzina Giorgobiani, former member of the Supreme Council of Georgia and former head of the Forestry Department; Levan Nikolaishvili, former deputy chief of staff of the armed forces, Petre Mamradze, former MP.
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