One foreign election observer, who was granted anonymity to speak candidly with Politico, said there was a scuffle at another polling station near the border with neighboring Azerbaijan. “We have seen attempts at ballot stuffing in which the perpetrator was spotted, fled, and waited for the observer to leave before trying again,” the observer said. “Given the number of similar accusations coming from other polling stations, I fear that international observers will have a very hard time finding these elections fair.”
“Incidents and violations were recorded throughout the country during the voting process,” Tbilisi-based NGO International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy (ISFED) said in a statement. One in 10 election observers reported problems, including allegations of voters being bussed in by Georgian Dream coordinators.
At the same time, Georgian Dream accused the opposition of “violations” and said police were investigating accusations that an opposition politician “slapped” one of the ruling party’s coordinators outside a polling station.
EU dream
Georgia was granted candidate status by the EU in December, but its application to join the EU has been frozen after it passed a number of Russian-style bills that would strangle political rights and civil society. In May, Georgian Dream pushed through a bill that would classify Western-backed NGOs, media outlets, and human rights organizations as “foreign agents,” effectively outlawing all public references to the LGBTQ+ community, and banning broadcasters from broadcasting. passed a law forcing the censorship and banning of content. pride event.
Authorities used tear gas and batons to quell protests against the move, which critics say are the same tactics used by the Kremlin to suppress opposition inside Russia, and organizers They were restrained and assaulted while in custody. The United States has imposed sanctions on Georgian Dream politicians and police officers over the crackdown.
Kobakhidze said in August that if UNM remained in power in a key election campaign, the government would move to ban all parliamentary opposition parties, including UNM. “I believe that abolishing[Congressional]powers is a logical continuation of outlawing these political parties. should not be exercised.”
In response to a question from Politico ahead of the vote, UNM’s Bokuchava said there was “no chance” that UNM would have to disband because he did not believe Georgian Dream was “given the mandate” to govern the country. I can’t think of it.” .
Opposition parties and experts place the blame for Georgia’s rapid pivot away from the EU and towards Russia on Georgian Trump, the country’s richest man and a man who wields great personal power over the party, judiciary and state. It is attributed to Ivanishvili, the founder of Dream.
Source link Read more related news on Gnews
