The 15th Baku International Film Festival will take place from October 4-8, Azernews reports.
Month: October 2024
Mikhail Podolyak on the banners of the Georgian Dream
Advisor to the President of Ukraine, Mikhail Podolyak, reacted to the appearance of propaganda banners commissioned by the ruling party “Georgian Dream,” stating that they “not only offend Ukraine but also Georgia.”
Mikhail Podolyak discussed Russia’s aggression towards neighboring countries in a comment on the “Formula” TV channel.
“Of course, I had a negative reaction because the aggressor is the Russian Federation. Russia can only exist in a state of war, destroying neighboring countries, and no matter how magnificent your infrastructure is, at some point, Russia—out of revenge and hatred—will come in and destroy everything.
This is not the desire of either Ukraine or Georgia; it is solely Russia’s desire. When someone mixes up cause and effect, they put their citizens and their country at risk because Russia is not a country that respects international law and bilateral agreements.
Russia will always find a reason to attack any neighbor because it believes it has the right to do so. The post-Soviet space, where you and we are located, is perceived as its sphere of influence and opportunities, and Russia believes that the choice of president, ministers, deputies, and so on should be coordinated with it.
This is unacceptable, and to summarize everything said above, it offends not only Ukraine but also Georgia,” said Mikhail Podolyak.
On September 26, banners appeared on the streets of Tbilisi, featuring black-and-white photographs of war-destroyed Ukrainian cities on one half, and a “peaceful and beautiful” Georgia on the other.
This electoral innovation from the ruling party is how the “Georgian Dream” attempts to convey its main narrative to voters once again—that the “Georgian Dream” government is so wise and far-sighted that there is peace in Georgia, while Ukrainians did not exhibit the same insight, which is why there is war and destruction there.
For example, one of the photos shows a church in the village of Bohorodychne in Donetsk Oblast, destroyed as a result of bombings, while on the right is a color photograph of the Tbilisi Cathedral. (Interestingly, for this poster, they chose not to use a photo of any old Georgian historical temple, but rather an image of a church built a few years ago by Bidzina Ivanishvili.)
On the same day, the “Georgian Dream” distributed an electoral video with the same content. The footage showed a devastated Ukraine and a “flourishing and beautiful” Georgia.
Transparency freed from restrictions
The Anti-Corruption Bureau removed the organization “Transparency International-Georgia” (TI) from the list of “entities with a declared electoral purpose” after a proposal from Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze.
The decision to assign this status to “Transparency International-Georgia” and personally to the organization’s director, Eka Gigauri, was made by the Anti-Corruption Bureau on September 24 and sparked significant protest from civil society and the opposition.
The decision to assign this status to “Transparency International-Georgia” and personally to the organization’s director, Eka Gigauri, was made by the Anti-Corruption Bureau on September 24 and sparked significant protest from civil society and the opposition.
As a result of this decision, the organization was deprived of the right to observe the crucial parliamentary elections on October 26. TI then announced that it would file a lawsuit and would still monitor the elections through the work of volunteers.
The head of the Anti-Corruption Bureau, Razhden Kuprashvili, stated that the decision to remove the status and corresponding restrictions “was made in the interests of the country.”
“No one should be given the opportunity to manipulate or cast doubt on the results of the parliamentary elections on October 26. Therefore, I consider it necessary to exercise my right and annul this decision,” said Razhden Kuprashvili.
On October 1, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze made an unexpected appeal to the Anti-Corruption Bureau, urging it not only to revoke the decision regarding “Transparency International-Georgia” but also to refrain from assigning similar status to any other organizations or individuals before the parliamentary elections.
The concept of “entity with a declared electoral purpose” is included in the law “On Political Associations of Citizens.” Organizations and individuals assigned this status are required to provide the Anti-Corruption Bureau with financial reports and disclose information about the bank details of accounts used for income and expenses related to their electoral purposes. They are also prohibited from acting as observers in elections.
The Anti-Corruption Bureau stated that monitoring revealed that Transparency International-Georgia and its executive director, Eka Gigauri, “are actively participating in the election campaign, aimed both at supporting specific political parties and calling for the abstention from supporting certain parties.”
In response, Transparency International-Georgia stated that they “have been and remain loyal to Georgia’s European choice, which is enshrined in the Constitution and reflects the aspirations of an absolute majority of the population.”
Various international organizations have called for the decision to be revoked. On October 1, the PACE (Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe) issued a statement expressing deep concern that “Transparency International-Georgia” is forced to suspend its election monitoring activities.
