Opposition Suspends Talks

The nine-party opposition coalition said on February 8 it was suspending negotiations with the authorities, as the ruling party had shown no willingness to address opposition demands.

Coalition leaders had wanted the authorities, in particular, to immediately meet three demands, which they say, required no time-consuming legislative amendments: the release of those arrested during the November 7 unrest and the dismissal of Tamar Kintsurashvili, director general of the Georgian Public Broadcaster (GPB), and Levan Tarkhnishvili, chairman of the Central Election Commission (CEC).

“Unless these three demands are met, which do not need any working groups or any legislative amendments, we will not take part in pointless discussions,” Koba Davitashvili, leader of the People’s Party, said.

The demands are three of 17 outlined in a joint memorandum signed by twelve opposition parties earlier this month.

MP Zviad Dzidziguri of the opposition Conservative Party said because the ruling party was “dragging out the process…we do not want to continue talks with them.” “On February 15 we will call out our supporters and begin permanent rallies,” Dzidziguri said.

Both politicians were speaking at a news conference outside the Tbilisi municipality, where the coalition officially notified the Tbilisi Mayor’s Office of its intention to hold a large-scale rally outside Parliament on February 15. MP Levan Berdzenishvili of the Republican Party has also confirmed that the bloc was suspending talks unless the three demands were met.

“The protest rally will be held regardless of whether our demands are met or not,” Jondi Bagaturia, leader of Georgian Troupe – part of the coalition – said. “But protests will be suspended if our demands are met; if not, they will continue indefinitely, ending only when the current authorities are removed.”

Parliamentary Chairperson Nino Burjanadze said the suspension of talks was “strange” and “incomprehensible.”

“The meetings we had were actually very constructive. We have taken steps on a number of issues. One of the [joint] working groups [of the opposition and the authorities] was today clarifying issues related to the release of prisoners [arrested during the November 7 unrest],” Burjanadze told journalists on February 8. “Therefore, I think that it is strange to suspend negotiations while we are in the process of implementing agreements. I reiterate our readiness to reach agreement and to undertake concrete steps. The language of ultimata is unacceptable.”

“I want to hope that at least part of the opposition will remain constructive,” she added.

She was apparently referring to a statement by the Industrialist Party leader, MP Zurab Tkemaladze, who said earlier on February 8: “The final deadline [given to the authorities by the opposition] expires on February 15 and I think we should wait until then, wait for answers and make decisions afterwards.”

The Industrialist Party, like the New Rights Party, is not part of the nine-party opposition coalition, but both of them signed the 17-point joint memorandum.

Davit Zurabishvili, a lawmaker from the Republican Party, part of the nine-party coalition, acknowledged that the New Rights and Industrialist parties may not necessarily agree with the decision to suspend talks, saying the decision had been taken unilaterally by the bloc.

Levan Bezhashvili, a lawmaker from the ruling party, has criticized the opposition’s suspension of talks, saying it was “absolutely inappropriate.”

“We have said many times that we are willing to engage in dialogue and we are already taking concrete measures to reach agreement, but today’s response is absolutely inappropriate,” Bezhashvili told reporters on February 8. “It is neither in the interests of the authorities nor the opposition [to suspend talks]. The population wants an agreement with the country’s interests taken on board. The interests of the country, particularly, stability, require that political agreement is reached.”
 
Ruling party lawmakers have been adamant that progress on meeting opposition demands was being made. They cite the February 8 meeting between the sides, in which the release of 43 people held on public disorder charges related to November 7 was discussed. The government maintains that time-consuming legal procedures need to be worked out before anyone can be released.

Regarding the dismissal of the GPB director-general, ruling party lawmakers say this is beyond their capacity. Only the GPB board of directors can dismiss her, they say. The station currently has no board, but a new board, according to the parliamentary chairperson, will be formed by the end of February.

The opposition and the authorities have already held two rounds of talks – on February 1 and 5. Tentative agreement was reached on the abolition of the first-past-the-post, winner-takes-all system for the election of majoritarian MPs and on a constitutional amendment stipulating that the cabinet resign automatically after parliamentary elections. These issues, however, require time, as legislative amendments are necessary. Ruling party lawmakers also say the composition of election administrations on a parity basis- another opposition demand – has been agreed upon, too. The actual details, however, need to be worked out.