Tbilisi Works over Legal Base to Hold Early Elections in Adjara

While Adjarian leader Aslan Abashidze mobilizes army reservists, central authorities are working over the document considering reform of the Autonomous Republic’s system of governance, which will require holding of the snap elections of the local legislative body.

According to the decree issued by Head of the Adjara Autonomous Republic Aslan Abashidze, district departments of the securities councils will be set up in Adjara to secure “mobilization of army reservists, protection of facilities of vital importance and securing order and stability in the Autonomous Republic,” Adjara TV run by the local authorities reported on April 27.

Abashidze explained the move by “the aggressive policy of the central authorities of Georgia towards the Adjara Autonomous Republic.” The decree reads that the measures aim at “avoiding civil confrontation in the region.”
 
Meanwhile, a group of lawmakers of the newly convened Georgian Parliament has launched working over the draft law, which will outline new system of governance of the Autonomous Republic. According to the proposal Adjara, which will retain autonomous status, will be run by the local Parliament and the Prime Minister. The latter will be elected by the local Parliament from the political party, which will have majority of seats.
 
“We have already elaborated a concept on the status of the Adjara Autonomous Republic. The work over the draft will be completed in a week and then submitted to the Parliament for consideration. The Parliament will discuss it in a month,” MP Davit Berdzenishvili, who is known as a radical opposition to Abashidze’s regime, told Civil Georgia on April 28. 

He said, the draft envisages cancellation of the post of the Head of Autonomy, occupied by Aslan Abashidze at the moment. The two-chamber Parliament of the Autonomy will be also canceled, according to the proposal.

The position of the Head of Autonomy was introduced through the constitutional amendments made in the Adjarian Autonomy’s constitution. The central authorities, as well as legal experts claim Adjara’s constitution is in contradiction to the Georgia’s constitution. Hence, Georgian central authorities might appeal the Georgia’s Constitutional Court to demand annulment of the Adjarian constitution.

“We will appeal the Constitutional Court as well. We will make everything to secure creation of a perfect legal base, which will contribute Abashidze’s ouster,” MP Davit Berdzenishvili said.

In case of Parliament’s approval of the draft over the Adjara’s governance system, holding of snap parliamentary elections in the region will become necessary. President Saakashvili said on April 25 that the issue is already under discussion by the central authorities.

Newly set up anti-Abashidze movement, which is led by Tengiz Asanidze, who was released from Adjarian Security Ministry’s jail in early April, after the European Court of Human Rights’ ruling, intends to hold protest rallies in Adjara with the demand of holding snap elections. Tengiz Asanidze managed to establish close links with Saakashvili’s government after he was released.

“Adjarian population will hold peaceful rallies with a single demand: holding of snap elections in Adjara. But this will happen only after the legal base for early elections is created by the Parliament of Georgia,” Tengiz Asanidze told Rustavi 2 television on April 28.

Meanwhile, preparations are underway for the large-scale military exercises in Georgia’s western town of Poti at the Black Sea coast, which is some 30 km away from the Adjarian Autonomy.  Around 1,500 servicemen of the Georgian armed forces, battle tanks and air forces will be involved in the exercises, codenamed as Dioscuria – 2004.

Adjarian leader Aslan Abashidze has already expressed concerns regarding upcoming military exercises in Poti. On April 27 Abashidze said “military exercises on the background of confrontation [between the country’s central authorities and Adjarian leadership] are a source of concern.”

However, Georgian Defense Ministry tried to allay Abashidze’s fears claming that the large-scale military exercise has nothing common with recent developments in Adjara. “These exercises have been scheduled long before the Adjara crisis,” Givi Iukuridze, Chief of Staff of the Georgian Armed Forces told reporters on April 28.