The Case Against the Legitimacy of the Ruling Georgian Dream Party
Protesters in Tbilisi, facing mobilized special forces officers, erect a barricade between Liberty Square and Parliament on the night of November 30th, 2024.
It’s time for the media and democratic politicians to stop tripping over the veneer of neutrality and address the Georgian Dream as they truly are: an illegitimate ruling party.
12/24/24
By: Daniel Miller
On October 26th, 2024, parliamentary elections were held in the country of Georgia. I had been traveling there since early June and was currently staying at an apartment in the capital city of Tbilisi. The day was filled with accusations against the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party of voter intimidation, coercion, and ballot stuffing, with one incident having been caught on video. As Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze – himself a GD party loyalist – denounced the claims, multiple protests occurred over the next four weeks with a simple demand: a new round of parliamentary elections that are monitored by impartial international observers.
The number of protesters ranged anywhere from a few dozen to a few thousand, depending on the time of day and location. Marching protests occurred around important traffic routes in Tbilisi, and people frequently gathered in front of Parliament. On November 19th, police violently dispersed a crowd of protesters who were camping and blocking a vital intersection in front of Tbilisi State University, using water cannons and violently beating and detaining 16 protesters on charges of petty hooliganism and disobedience to lawful police orders. I attended the night before but arrived an hour too late only to find a busy intersection covered in water.
However, the defiant Georgians were back hours later, where they remained overnight. After tense standoffs with police, the protest ended peacefully around 7:00 am.
Six days later, on Monday, November 25th, a few thousand people gathered around Parliament early in the morning – many of whom had been there since the night before – to protest the inaugural session of the “newly elected” parliament, which was boycotted by every other opposition member. Speeches were given by President Salome Zourabichvili and other opposition party members. The parliamentary session was broadcast on a big screen outside Parliament, with the crowd jeering and banging on the metal barriers protecting the front entrance of the building.
Three days later, on Thursday, November 28th, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze upset roughly 85% of the country when he announced that he would be suspending efforts to join the European Union (EU) until late 2028. GD ran its campaign on the promise that it would join the EU, and many voters suddenly felt disillusioned and betrayed. Hours later, tens of thousands of people were gathered in front of parliament, with thousands more taking to the streets in other cities and villages across the country.
I was shocked at what I witnessed over the next four nights, some of which you will read about below. The rest is information reported by journalists and recorded by various human rights organizations that I use to argue against the legitimacy of the Georgian Dream as a ruling party according to the framework of Western democracy. After witnessing dozens of beatings myself, narrowly escaping from one special forces officer, and noticing more of my colleagues disappearing each day, I decided that the atmosphere was becoming too dangerous for someone like me to continue.
Refusing to Address Claims of Vote Rigging and Election Fraud Properly
As the results were being tabulated on election day, numerous claims of voter intimidation, ballot monitoring by GD party members, and ballot stuffing were reported across the country. These claims were never given any serious attention by the courts. The Central Election Commission (CEC), an ostensibly impartial institution in charge of certifying the country’s election results, has faced wide criticism of being compromised by GD.
When asked about these claims, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze flippantly said that “irregularities happen everywhere, in every democracy.” This is not the way someone who cares about democracy and transparency responds. At least four independent reports have been released that all effectively say the same thing. To maintain impartiality, official conclusions are never published, but any honest reading of the reports is enough for even the most delusional GD supporter to call for a new round of elections.
All of the available reports can be read by clicking the links below:
Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE)
International Republican Institute (IRI)
Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE)
European Network of Election Monitoring Organizations (ENEMO)
Erosion of Public Trust
Since October 28th, protesters have been demanding a new round of parliamentary elections that are heavily monitored by international observers to ensure fairness and transparency. Prime Minister Kobakhidze continues to deny that the protesters are demanding anything at all while perpetuating conspiracy theories that the collective West is attempting to interfere in Georgia’s affairs. He can’t help but let his arrogance shine through during interviews. If he had any political sense, he would announce that any and all claims of election rigging would be investigated, at the very least for propaganda purposes.
Exactly one month later, Kobakhidze announced that he would be suspending talks for accession into the European Union (EU) until late 2028, accusing the EU of blackmail for demanding new elections within a year. Not only was this a direct campaign promise, but it also validated the opinions of those who claimed GD was lying. Up to 85% of the country favors EU integration, and it’s a goal enshrined in the Georgian constitution. Hours later, tens of thousands of protesters appeared in front of Parliament and down Rustaveli Avenue, with another demand to reverse the decision. Kobakhidze also said that they would not be accepting any grant aid, which raised even more suspension by incredulous Georgians about the party’s true intentions.
Since November 28th, several thousand to 200,000 people have been protesting in Tbilisi alone, with thousands more across the country in villages and smaller cities like Batumi, Zugdidi, and Kutaisi. Since Georgia’s population is fewer than 3.8 million people, the number of consistent protesters for almost four weeks straight has ranged from 1% to 5% of the population, well within range to effectuate political change. For reference, around 5% of the East German population protested from September to November, culminating in the eventual fall of the Berlin Wall.
Based on these numbers and events, I think it’s fair to say that roughly 4 out of every 5 Georgians no longer trust the ruling party. Since the free press has not yet been shut down despite various threats and intimidation, accurate public polling is still possible from independent groups. According to recent polling, only 22% of the country supports GD, and a majority both support the protests and calls for new parliamentary elections.
Regardless of the legitimacy of the party, the Georgian Dream wields power by controlling the country’s existing institutions. It can continue functioning as if they are legitimate, but it must adhere to European democratic standards if it wants to fulfill its campaign promise of integrating with Europe. The unwillingness of party members to play by the rules to which they agreed in the first place has further eroded public trust.
The public has also lost trust in the police, who are paid to protect the state instead of the people. Journalists, protesters, and activists have been assaulted close to Parliament and around the city, sometimes directly in front of the police, by roaming gangs of masked thugs known as “Titushky,” and they simply act as if nothing happened. In response, citizens formed their own security groups to protect protesters around Parliament and down Rustaveli Avenue. This is not just in Tbilisi; citizens and protesters have also fought with the police in other cities across the country.
Lack of Recognition
President Zourabichvili and every elected opposition party member refuse to recognize the results as legitimate while calling for another round of elections to be held under international supervision.
On December 14th, GD party hardliner Mikheil Kavelashvili was nominally elected president by a newly implemented electoral college system as the only candidate, comprising only GD parliament members. Since the opposition’s boycott remains in place, 75 of the potential 300 votes were not submitted, and one person did not vote for Kavelashvili. As of this writing, only the leaders of Belarus, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Serbia, and Hungary have recognized Kavelashvili as the president-elect. Russia, surprisingly and also notable, has not. President Zourabichvili has vowed to remain in her position until new elections are held, while PM Kobakhidze has threatened to imprison her if she refuses to leave when Kavelashvili is scheduled to begin his term on December 29th.
The international community has also not recognized the results. Only Russia, Belarus, Serbia, Hungary, Slovakia, Iran, Venezuela, and China – eight countries whose leaders are either dictators or have experienced democratic backsliding – recognize the results. This puts the GD government in the same category as the country’s two breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia which are only recognized by six nations. While no agreed-upon threshold exists for a country or region’s government to be considered legitimate, 4.1% of countries recognizing the results should hardly be regarded as legitimate. As a percentage, the number of protesters across Georgia has reached higher levels than the government has received in global recognition.
Hundreds of Recorded Human Rights Violations
Georgia is a party to at least seven international and human rights treaties, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT). While violations of these treaties are not legally binding, they can swiftly lead to sanctions, diplomatic pressure, and global ostracism. Over 450 individual reports of human rights violations were reported by Transparency International, including broken bones, concussions, and torture, the majority of which occurred within ten days after November 28th. Between 70 and 80 journalists have been targeted and assaulted.
The United Nations (UN) and other human rights organizations that have also released disturbing reports can be found in the links below:
Reporters Without Borders (RSF)
On the first night and at least one other during the first week, water cannons infused with chemical irritants were deployed against largely peaceful protesters in weather that hovered above freezing temperatures. The Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) has denied any chemicals were ever added to the water as paramedics have repeatedly asked for information so they can administer proper care to those affected.
Scores of aggressive protesters antagonized the police by shooting pyrotechnics and throwing rocks and water bottles. Armored special forces officers equipped with shields, helmets, and batons were always quick to replace the police, many of whom would fire back those same rocks and water bottles. It was so bad the first night that I felt it necessary to protect the back of my head with my forearms, as I faced the crowd while making my way through to the other side. These details are important for context, but the violence would have happened all the same even if everyone stood there silently. Warnings were broadcast to the crowd through a megaphone to disperse or face consequences, which is when they began treating everyone like criminals worthy of suffering broken bones and concussions.
Rubber bullets were used against some during the first few days, with one German journalist suffering a facial fracture and almost losing his left eye.
Green and purple lasers are used by the authorities to “paint” certain protesters, infrared marks that are visible through the visors on the helmets of special forces officers. This tells them to beat the protesters more aggressively once caught.
Opposition party members, activists of all professions, and identified protesters have been hunted down by masked authorities in public and their homes, often enduring severe beatings on their way to undisclosed detention centers for days at a time. On the sixth and seventh nights, police were patrolling both metro stations on either side of Parliament, detaining and severely beating anyone who made it to the top of the escalator with a face covering or gas mask. I carried both and always arrived using the metro, so I would have certainly been caught if I decided to attend.
Those facing charges are given speedy trials that rely solely on police testimony while all other testimony is ignored. Almost everyone arrested faces administrative charges, while 30 individuals face criminal charges. Six are facing charges of organized group violence, none of whom know each other.
This does not include the indiscriminate use of tear gas deployed into dense crowds of peaceful protesters with the understanding that it could cause a stampede. One 22-year-old protester was medically induced into a coma after being struck in the forehead by a canister that seemed to have been launched from a rooftop of one of the government buildings.
There has been no accountability for these gross and egregious violations. Zero police and special forces officers have been investigated for their participation.
Various sanctions have already been imposed on certain government officials from EU member states and the United States, with more in the works, but more needs to be done. The Hungarian and Slovakian prime ministers Viktor Orbán and Robert Fico, two leaders who are reliably sympathetic to Russian interests, have vetoed collective sanctions from the EU.
It says a lot about every politician who refuses to acknowledge the October 28th election results yet always stops short of addressing the ruling party as illegitimate. It shows their lack of courage to address reality out of fear that it will upset their adversaries who rely solely on bullying tactics if they don’t get their way. History has never been kind to those who sought to placate authoritarians.
The media must stop hiding behind neutral rhetoric and confront the reality of the Georgian Dream’s illegitimacy. Treating this ruling party as legitimate only mirrors the cowardice of politicians too afraid to challenge the power-hungry, anti-democratic Georgian Dream members. Accurate reporting is not just a matter of principle, it’s a vital countermeasure against pro-GD outlets that push anti-Western and anti-democratic conspiracy theories. Authoritarians survive by exploiting contradictions through the use of effective propaganda that paints them as victims while simultaneously projecting strength.
Journalists and politicians committed to democracy must expose these tactics and confront the Georgian Dream party head-on. History is never kind to those who equivocate in the face of oppression.
