Controversial Constitutional Changes Raises Questions over Unity of Revolution Leaders

Burjanadze says she will not be the Chairperson of weak Parliament.

Political analysts in Georgia suggest that the constitutional amendments, which would envisage distribution of power among the legislative and the executive bodies in favor of the latter, would cause major disagreement between the revolution leaders.

President Mikheil Saakashvili and State Minister Zurab Zhvania have already expressed willingness to see the strong executive government with the right to dissolve the Parliament. While Nino Burjanadze, the Parliamentary Chairperson, says that she will never be the speaker of “the weak Parliament.” These political figures led the November bloodless revolution, which ousted former President Shevardnadze.

Opponents of the new leadership already note the negative sides of the landslide victory of Mikheil Saakashvili in the January 4 snap presidential polls. Some observers say that the new President, who has received more than 96% of votes, is willing to use huge popular support in consolidating of power in his hands. 
 
Before departure to London for holidays Nino Burjanadze met with the journalists on January 22 to share her opinion regarding the ongoing developments in the country. The constitutional changes were the top issue discussed by the Parliamentary Chairperson.

“I am not going to be the Chairperson of the weak Parliament,” she said.

Nino Burjanadze, who led the country in the transition period from November 23, when Eduard Shevardnadze resigned till January 25 – before the inauguration of Mikheil Saakashvili as a President, admitted that there are “minor disagreements between the revolution leaders regarding the constitutional changes.”

“I am deeply convinced that the final version of the constitutional amendments will be absolutely agreed and neither Mikheil [Saakashvili] nor Zurab [Zhvania] will support the model, which weakens the Parliament’s role,” Nino Burjanadze said.

However, her hopes seems to be fading away, as State Minister Zurab Zhvania noted, that he supports the system in which the executive government will have a right “to dissolve ineffective Parliament.”

“We need a model, which is in force in the most of democratic countries of the world. Some people say that we need this model just because to dissolve the Parliament and consolidate all the power in the hand of the executive branch. I am not going to participate in these endless disputes,” Zurab Zhvania told reporters on January 28.
 
Mikheil Saakashvili, inspired with the landslide victory in the elections, also says that he is not going to be “the President with no function.” He told Georgian reporters on January 29, while visiting Germany, that he favors “strong presidency.”

He added that the strong executive government is needed to carry out decisive and urgent reforms in the country. 

“The Parliament should assist the executive government in carrying out reforms; however it does not mean that the Parliament should not criticize the government, fearing of being dissolved. The legislative body should be strong enough to criticize the authorities, but this should be a constructive criticism,” Nino Burjanadze says.

Burjanadze does not seem to have a great desire of being in the opposition again. “I hope that I will not need to be in the opposition any more,” she told reporters on January 22. However, situation has changed since then and now she has to choose. 

Ia Antadze of Radio Liberty says that the constitutional changes, which envisage weak parliament, will trigger Burjanadze’s discontent. “She has two ways – either to split with her allies and going back to opposition, or to agree on this model,” Ia Antadze says.

Some representatives of the civil organizations have already protested against the constitutional changes, which would enable the President and the cabinet to dissolve the legislative body.

“The constitutional amendments, which are being developed, are absolutely inadmissible, as it would threaten democracy in Georgia,” Tina Khidasheli of the Georgian Young Lawyers Association said.

Tina Khidasheli says that the current political elite “still remain in the post-revolution euphoria.” She says that the authorities "try to satisfy their own political ambitions" with the constitutional amendments.

“They try to push private or party interests in the name of the state interests,” she added.

Avtandil Demetrashvili, the former Chairman of the Constitutional Court, says that the current constitution turned to be affective and only minor changes might be necessary to further improve the document.

“I fear that the ongoing disputes over the constitution are only caused by the current political situation and not with the long-term state interests,” Demetrashvili said, referring to revolution leaders’ willingness to redistribute power among each other. 

Ghia Nodia of the think-tank NGO Caucasian Institute for Peace, Democracy and Development, says that “the amendments, should increase the power of the Parliament in order to balance the President’s authority.”