During the campaign rally in the town of Gori, near the Russian occupation line, the leader of the ruling Georgian Dream, Bidzina Ivanishvili, blamed the 2008 war on the “external forces” and the Georgian government of the time. He said the Georgian people “will find it in themselves to apologize.” Conspicuously, he made no mention of Russia’s responsibility for the military invasion and occupation that continues to this day. The official representatives of the GD have been quick to justify the rhetoric of their honorary chairman, while the opposition slammed it in the harshest terms.
Civil.ge collected domestic reactions to Ivanishvili’s remarks
Ruling Party
Irakli Kobakhidze, Prime Minister: “Bidzina Ivanishvili mentioned Georgia many times, he mentioned the future of Georgia many times, and these were his main messages, which are, of course, related to the development of our country. He also talked about the very serious crime committed by the previous regime in 2008 when they instigated a war in our country and they want to instigate a similar war now. To that end, they have been given the task to somehow stir up the situation in this country and instigate another war. As for Russia, everyone knows what our position is in this regard. 20% of the Georgian territory is occupied and everyone knows this very well. Now the main thing to talk about is to avoid the same events that happened in 2008. The opposition now has the only task, with this only task they want to return to power, to start the war, just like they did in 2008.”
Shalva Papuashvili, Parliament Speaker: “The opposition, as always, has shown its face that it is ready engage in speculation on all issues, including hiding behind the names of our heroes who fought heroically in 2008 and who died, some got maimed during this war, military as well as civilians. They [the opposition] are now hiding behind their names as if the discussion is about them [the heroes] being the ones who committed the war crimes, be it in 2008 or any other time…”…Over the years, with the millions of dollars that have been poured into the non-governmental sector from abroad, which was supposed to serve the issue of conflict resolution, the non-governmental sector has declared the Ossetian people as criminals, war criminals, with whom, from their point of view, they probably have nothing to talk about, which is actually a scandal, because the whole thing has shown us once again the crisis that our non-governmental sector is in.”
Kakha Kaladze, Tbilisi Mayor, Georgian Dream Secretary General: “This is the usual speculation that you have been preaching and practicing for the third day now. This is called political speculation…Show me a specific sentence where Bidzina Ivanishvili said that we will apologize to the occupiers. These are speculations, lies, attempts to mislead the public. What is actually happening is that the Georgian Dream is the team that is working and taking concrete steps to unite the country. Territorial integrity of the country is the first priority for all decent people who love our country, motherland, and we will do everything in this way to take concrete steps… They are speculating about the dead heroes, none of our dead heroes would have been there if it wasn’t for their dirty politics, their treacherous actions which they did to the country and the Georgian people in 2008, they fulfilled the task given to them from the outside, they made the country lose territories, we lost our heroic soldiers, civilians and tens of thousands of people were displaced. This was their treacherous policy for which, I assure and promise you, they will certainly have to answer.”
Mamuka Mdinaradze, Parliamentary Majority Leader post on Facebook: “All the steps taken for the reunification of the country with peace, reconciliation and mutual forgiveness are extremely irritating for the agency network. It’s a complete lustration. (See today’s reactions from outside-the-government [ed. mocking CSOs] and United National Movement representatives to Bidzina Ivanishvili’s statement). P.S. In response to the UNM’s disgusting, speculative and coordinated message box: they do not apologize to the murderers of anyone, let alone of Antsukhelidze. Murderers are to be tried! They apologize to the mourners.”
Opposition
Nika Gvaramia, Coalition for Change: “Near the occupied zone, in Gori, Bidzina Ivanishvili attempted to destroy the dignity of our country. His statement was grist to the enemy’s mill, his statement was an attempt to falsify history and to falsify it against our motherland. His statement that we started the war and shed the blood of our brothers, as he said, was a lie and aimed at humiliating us, at abusing our nation once again.”
Tina Bokuchava, UNM platform: “In Gori, Bidzina Ivanishvili’s statement was one of the most shameful, disgusting, treacherous statements. What does he say to the families of our national heroes… that they and all of us have to apologize to the enemy? Georgia does not apologize to the enemy, this is an extremely insulting, anti-state, anti-Georgian statement, and I am sure that Bidzina Ivanishvili will receive an answer to this statement from the Georgian people at the October 26 elections.”
Grigol Gegelia, Lelo for Georgia: “This shameful statement about the apology serves the only purpose, Ivanishvili is announcing constitutional changes, is announcing the so-called neutrality and is doing everything to remove Georgia from the international community, to turn it into a zone of isolation and actually is doing everything to ensure that Georgia has no friends, partners and defenders. The overall result of all this will be the complete and final isolation of Georgia from the international community and the complete and final official fall into the clutches of Russia.”
Beka Liluashvili, For Georgia: “He removed Russia as an occupying state, as an aggressor, from the area of responsibility and, on the contrary, blamed the Western world. These were very troubling accents [in the statement].”