At a briefing on September 23, Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili took stock of the talks between Gakharia-Khazaradze and said that even though the agreement could not be reached, it set a precedent for an effort to compromise.
She said the biggest obstacles to Georgia’s political development are the lack of a culture of consensus, a difficult past, mistrust, and, at times, a conspiracy mindset. In this context, she stressed the pivotal role of the Georgian Charter as a single document that all pro-Western parties agree on despite these shortfalls. She highlighted that agreeing to the Charter is “not just a signature” but an agreement on a specific course of action to put Georgia back on track towards the EU.
“I won’t allow anyone [in the opposition campaign] not to talk about the Charter day and night,” Zurabishvili warned, noting that the parties seem to be talking less about the Charter, which she said is “the only instrument of unity” among them. “The Georgian Charter is the roadmap to return to Europe.”
Adding more flesh to her understanding of the Charter, President Zurabishvili particularly stressed that following the elections, the four signatory coalitions shall repeal all anti-democratic laws recently passed by GD, pardon those who were fined or detained for protests, and endeavor to create a technocratic government to serve for a short term, perhaps one year, that would reset the political system to enable fair democratic contest.
President Zurabishvili once again emphasized the existential character of the upcoming elections and called for total voter mobilization. She said Georgians should not necessarily think about which particular opposition party to vote for but focus on the idea of Georgia’s European future.
The President argued that the true nature of the Georgian Dream is becoming more obvious “day after day,” and the ruling party is “no longer pro-Russian but simply Russian,” basing its campaign not on a credible proposal for the future but on fear, threats, and revenge.
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