The Georgian political parties signed A way ahead for Georgia, a compromise document submitted to the parties by the European Council President Charles Michel, at the Orbeliani Palace on April 19.

Davit Bakradze, Aleko Elisashvili, Badri Japaridze, Zurab Japaridze, Mamuka Khazaradze, Vakhtang Megrelishvili, Shalva Papuashvili, Salome Samadashvili, Khatuna Samnidze, Archil Talakvadze, and Giorgi Vashadze have signed the document.

Khatuna Samnidze, Davit Bakradze and Salome Samadashvili have made signatures individually, as the bloc National Movement – Strength in Unity and the European Georgia party did not join the compromise paper.

The EU and US Ambassadors Carl Hartzell and Kelly Degnan attended the signing ceremony. European Council President Charles Michel joined the event virtually.

President Michel presented a new document to the political parties on April 18. According to a new document, if the ruling party wins less than 43 per cent of electoral support in local polls, early parliamentary elections will be called in 2022.

After nearly six months of negotiations, the citizens of Georgia have made clear that they want the political crisis to end, and for all elected Members to work together in Parliament and address the serious challenges facing the country, including the regional challenges, COVID, and the economic crisis.

With this in mind, the European Union and the United States call on all Members of Georgia’s Parliament to sign the agreement that European Council President Michel will propose today. This is an agreement all Members can sign in good faith rather than a unilateral action that undermines the goal of a broad-based agreement.

The institutional reforms in the agreement represent important progress for Georgia’s democratic development and are of significant benefit for its citizens, helping to create a more independent judiciary, stronger electoral processes, and a Parliament that can better reflect the voices of all people of Georgia.

Accepting this compromise demonstrates courage and a commitment by all parties to put the needs of the citizens of Georgia first, ahead of the interests of any one political party.

Parliament Speaker Archil Talakvadze is grateful to the European Council President Charles Michel and special envoy Christian Danielsson for their mediation leadership.

“Even though the opposition was not ready to sign, we’ll guide judicial and electoral reforms by Danielsson’s proposal. We leave doors open for parties to join,” Talakvadze tweeted.

The ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party and the opposition could not agree on a solution, Christian Danielsson briefed reporters following the hours-long joint meeting between GD and the opposition on Tuesday.

The opposition failed to provide any evidence on elections fraud. But, we showed evidence that the radical opposition forged the parallel vote tabulation (PVT) results”, Irakli Kobakhidze, the Chairman of the Georgian Dream party, said after a joint meeting mediated by EU mediator Christian Danielsson.

“Today, the international partners presented a document in which there was no record, either directly or indirectly, on any snap elections,” he added.

Kobakhidze stated that the document by Danielsson included GD’s proposal on Nika Melia’s case. “In particular, in case of paying bail, Georgian Dream pledged to ensure application of amnesty bill in the June 20th case. However, the opposition rejected this solution,” he said.

Christian Danielsson, a personal envoy of the European Council President Charles Michel, said after the talks today that none of the parties agreed on a solution.

Besides, EU mediator Christian Danielson published the proposals made to political parties.

Danielsson said he proposed a solution to the parties that puts the country interest first, but none of the political parties could agree to it. EU mediator has already left for Brussels.

Danielsson returned to Tbilisi for the second time on Sunday to help the opposition and the government reaching an agreement. He first arrived in Tbilisi on March 12. After a five-day mediation that ended with no result, he left the country.

Charles Michel announced on March 22 that Christian Danielsson would travel back to Georgia to help the parties to agree.

The Georgian opposition parties that won seats in the Georgian Parliament of the 10th Convocation believe the 2020 parliamentary elections were a fraud. They have been demanding repeat parliamentary elections and the release of the United National Movement Chair, Nika Melia, and the co-founder of the TV channel Mtavari Arkhi Giorgi Rurua.

Source: https://1tv.ge/en/news/parliament-speaker-we-leave-doors-open-for-parties-to-join/

In the early minutes of March 31, after mediating an eight-hour meeting between the ruling Georgian Dream and the opposition parties, Christian Danielsson, EU Council President Charles Michel’s Personal Envoy to mediate Georgia’s crisis, said he was “sad to report that none of the political parties could agree to this solution in whole.”

Danielsson publicized the document he proposed the parties for agreement. While the Georgian Dream and the opposition leaders traded accusations afterward over the failure to strike the deal, it seems the parties largely agreed on the electoral reform, judicial reform, and parliamentary power-sharing points. They failed, however, as expected, to reach a consensus over the release of alleged political prisoners and the issue of future elections.

The opposition’s key demand for snap elections – fiercely rejected by the GD government – was not reflected in the public document. It referred, however, to the prospect for the release and dropping charges against Nika Melia, top opposition leader, by initiating amnesty for June 2019 unrest participants. This passage did not include the release of Giorgi Rurua, pro-opposition Mtavari Arkhi TV shareholder, whom the opposition also regards as a political prisoner.

Danielsson is now expected to update President Michel about the development in the coming days, while it remains unclear whether the EU mediation efforts will continue.

“This is a solution that requires political courage and responsibility,” stated the EU diplomat. Below are the main takeaways of the text Danielsson put forward, that the parties rejected to fully endorse.

Source: https://civil.ge/archives/409492

The ultimate wish and task of all of civilized Europe and, in this case, of Mr. Michel is for us the authorities to continue working in the Parliament together with the opposition, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili told the press during his visit to Brussels.

A solution must be sought, though it cannot be at the expense of the state's interests, the Head of Government added.

"We had a very productive meeting with President Charles Michel. I would like to thank him once again for his direct mediatory engagement. His envoy is presently in Tbilisi, continuing negotiations with both the opposition and our party. The process continues. Tomorrow, we will have a chance to engage in dialogue. I would like to make one thing clear. We are called to find a solution, but it in nowise can happen at the expense of the state's interests. Of course, we are ready for a fair decision. It must be a compromise more or less acceptable to all. We have openly stated our position. I shared with Mr. Michel the position of our party and the Government, and he listened to our offers attentively. As you know, the opposition, over the past few days, has been especially destructive in its attempts to widen the gap instead of contributing to the process of dialogue. We have seen numerous attempts and provocations over the past few days. I hope that the opposition can continue constructive dialogue. The ultimate wish and task of all of civilized Europe and, in this case, of Mr. Michel is for us the authorities to continue working in the Parliament together with the opposition. And that is our ultimate task as well. Next few days will show how we will fulfil this task. I will abstain from disclosing our concrete positions, because there is no agreement yet and negotiations are still underway," Irakli Garibashvili said.

Press Service of the Government Administration

H.E. Giorgi Kvirikashvili, Prime Minister of Georgia met with H.E. Charles Michel, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Belgium in New York today.
Parties discussed democratic reforms implemented by Georgia towards its quest to European and Euro-Atlantic integration. While referring to the prospects of bilateral cooperation, special focus was made on the development of trade and economic relations. It was also noted that central role in this process is to be played by the associations of trade and industry, as well as individual private sector representatives. Upcoming visit of Belgian entrepreneurs to Georgia has been viewed as a step made forward towards this end. It is organized by Wallonia Export and Investments Agency and scheduled for November 2016.
Significance of the successful completion of the Visa Liberalization Process has been paid a special attention during the meeting. It was noted that Georgia has met all the criteria set in the Visa Liberalization Action Plan.
Prime Minister Kvirikashvili expressed gratitude to his colleague for the active engagement of the Kingdom of Belgium in the implementation of the Substantial Package of NATO.
Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Belgium reiterated commitment towards supporting the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Georgia. Upon closure, Prime Minister of Georgia invited his Belgium colleague to Georgia.