All the issues, except of demand for President Saakashvili’s resignation, can be negotiated and agreed, Davit Darchiashvili, a lawmaker from the ruling party, wrote in his opinion piece published in the Georgian daily, 24 Saati (24 Hours) on April 22.
MP Darchiashvili, who chairs the parliamentary committee for European integration issues, says that the authorities are offering to the opposition a possibility for a compromise based on “common sense and the current balance of power.”
“The opposition delays a clear and unified response to this proposal. I have an impression that part of opposition leaders is a hostage of its radical demands and/or is trying to save face before its supporters. It is also not ruled out that some may think that time is on their side and that representatives of the authorities will lose patience.”
MP Darchiashvili writes that a demand “you go and I will come” – a reference to the opposition’s demand for President Saakashvili’s resignation – into an agenda of a dialogue is “unacceptable.”
“All the other issues can be negotiated and an agreement is also possible. But an agreement does not mean unilateral concessions,” MP Darchiashvili says.
He then again reiterates topics, which the authorities say may become an agenda of possible discussions with the opposition: constitutional changes, involving cutting of presidential powers in favor of the parliament; more powers to the local self-governance; mechanisms for public control over the law enforcement agencies and election code.
“Going further into details of topics that should be discussed in the process of dialogue would be speculation,” he says.
MP Darchiashvili also write that an issue-based and sincere discussion on the future of the country will be possible if large part of the society, and not necessarily certain opposition leaders, takes into consideration number of principles. Here he writes that in the face of Russia’s threat “mocking of commander-in-chief [the President] and demanding his resignation is unjustified and unfair.”
In the context of these principles he also mentions, as he puts it, “several criminal cases, which trigger doubts among many people and questions objectivity of an investigation and a court verdict.” One of such cases is related with murder of Sandro Girgvliani. The case has turned into one of the key political issue since 2006 and it reemerges time after time in the political discourse, because of persisting allegations that the investigation covered up possible links of some Interior Ministry officials, as well as of wife of Interior Minister, Vano Merabishvili, to this case.
Without mentioning this specific case, MP Darchiashvili writes: “Not a single democratic country is ensured from this kind of cases. But [the protest] rally can not serve as an alternative to a court, even if you do not like a verdict or a certain representative of the judiciary.” He also says that “unprecedented” steps have been undertaken since 2006 to strengthen the judiciary and he also hails Vano Merabishvili, the interior minister, for “turning the police for the first time into service of its fundamental function – providing public order.”
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