October 28, 2024 - The South Caucasus News - SouthCaucasusNews.com

On October 27, the Foreign Ministries of Latvia and Lithuania issued statements on the Georgian parliamentary elections, both questioning the electoral process. The Latvian Foreign Ministry calls for an investigation of all violations noted by local and international observers, while the Lithuanian Foreign Ministry finds it difficult to generally recognize these elections as free and fair.

Latvian MFA Statement

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Latvia voiced “serious concerns” about the finding of international and local observers on the Georgian elections. The MFA notes that the elections “were held in the face of a pronounced political polarisation, amid tensions between the political power and the opposition. At the same time, especially in view of the situation, the great interest of the Georgian people in these elections – both the high turnout and the interest of the Georgian public in their progress and outcome – is to be welcomed.”

“Latvia calls on the Georgian authorities to take action immediately in order to investigate into the violations identified and ensure the confidence of the local and international community in the electoral process and the protection of citizens’ fundamental rights. The Georgian Government and law enforcement authorities must respect the right of Georgian citizens to express their views in elections conducted in accordance with all democratic principles. The assessment of the election results must be given by the people of Georgia,” stresses the MFA in its statement, further noting that it will “closely follow developments in the country.”

Lithuanian MFA Statement

The Lithuanian Foreign Ministry noted that the “unprecedented number of incidents and systemic violations, both throughout the electoral campaign and during the voting day,” and the “mass scale attacks against the political opponents of the ruling party, as well as civil society organizations,” topped with “the systemic use of disinformation in the electoral campaign and the use of state institutions and administrative resources throughout the electoral process,” makes it for Lithuania “difficult to recognize these elections as free and fair.”

“These violations have been registered by many international and local independent observers. The magnitude and the systemic nature of the violations, as well as sharp discrepancy between independent exit polls and the declared result puts the legitimacy of these elections and their final result into serious question. The President of Georgia has refused to accept the result,” reads the MFA’s statement.

“The democratic rights of Georgian people must be respected. Any attempts to undermine these rights are totally unacceptable. We call for the independent international inquiry of these elections and of all reported violations during them as a matter of urgency,” stresses the MFA, adding: “Georgia’s EU accession process has already been put on hold due to the adoption of highly controversial legislation by the Georgian parliament. The violations into Georgia’s Parliamentary elections complicates this path even further. Georgia’s ruling party and its leaders bear all the responsibility for the consequences.”

The statement concludes: “We believe that the EU will continue its political contacts with Georgia suspended, and its financial assistance to Georgian Government frozen. Moreover, additional restrictive measures against those responsible for fraudulent elections must be considered without further delay. Lithuania will continue standing with the Georgian people and their European choice. We will also continue supporting unwaveringly Georgia’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally established borders.”

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