Berliner Boersenzeitung - Georgia set to inaugurate disputed president amid political crisis

EUR -
AED 3.818872
AFN 72.995381
ALL 97.628835
AMD 412.308717
ANG 1.87262
AOA 948.217113
ARS 1071.937747
AUD 1.669898
AWG 1.871481
AZN 1.770887
BAM 1.945019
BBD 2.097971
BDT 124.171112
BGN 1.957122
BHD 0.392106
BIF 3072.667948
BMD 1.039712
BND 1.408592
BOB 7.20616
BRL 6.424271
BSD 1.039041
BTN 88.884307
BWP 14.471782
BYN 3.400352
BYR 20378.351121
BZD 2.087131
CAD 1.492688
CDF 2983.972533
CHF 0.941017
CLF 0.037352
CLP 1030.645386
CNY 7.58906
CNH 7.603615
COP 4584.08929
CRC 529.266234
CUC 1.039712
CUP 27.552362
CVE 109.656637
CZK 25.161549
DJF 184.777736
DKK 7.457728
DOP 63.269293
DZD 141.224049
EGP 52.869138
ERN 15.595677
ETB 132.719823
FJD 2.414105
FKP 0.823433
GBP 0.828557
GEL 2.921225
GGP 0.823433
GHS 15.274552
GIP 0.823433
GMD 74.859507
GNF 8981.173425
GTQ 8.011591
GYD 217.388136
HKD 8.072525
HNL 26.399664
HRK 7.457755
HTG 135.777375
HUF 411.341269
IDR 16829.814775
ILS 3.799393
IMP 0.823433
INR 88.874616
IQD 1361.155006
IRR 43758.871281
ISK 143.907034
JEP 0.823433
JMD 161.732724
JOD 0.737362
JPY 163.33404
KES 134.299226
KGS 90.455214
KHR 4180.885326
KMF 484.635682
KPW 935.740031
KRW 1531.724433
KWD 0.320252
KYD 0.865913
KZT 545.257592
LAK 22712.104931
LBP 93051.351154
LKR 303.915372
LRD 190.146005
LSL 19.490264
LTL 3.069998
LVL 0.628911
LYD 5.105674
MAD 10.490003
MDL 19.118302
MGA 4852.104386
MKD 61.573075
MMK 3376.943343
MNT 3532.940534
MOP 8.30578
MRU 41.394349
MUR 48.856002
MVR 16.009192
MWK 1801.712957
MXN 21.428231
MYR 4.642303
MZN 66.441461
NAD 19.490264
NGN 1604.576577
NIO 38.238043
NOK 11.790196
NPR 142.214692
NZD 1.84253
OMR 0.400315
PAB 1.039041
PEN 3.894313
PGK 4.220585
PHP 60.155123
PKR 289.346827
PLN 4.276433
PYG 8120.984713
QAR 3.789476
RON 4.975231
RSD 116.977622
RUB 114.889923
RWF 1441.687806
SAR 3.905851
SBD 8.716481
SCR 14.817878
SDG 625.387071
SEK 11.460431
SGD 1.414325
SHP 0.823433
SLE 23.70315
SLL 21802.239569
SOS 593.808471
SRD 36.674813
STD 21519.934922
SVC 9.091561
SYP 2612.307321
SZL 19.475048
THB 35.583617
TJS 11.325359
TMT 3.649388
TND 3.299908
TOP 2.435114
TRY 36.737951
TTD 7.061856
TWD 34.057322
TZS 2542.094918
UAH 43.727007
UGX 3816.842925
USD 1.039712
UYU 45.577143
UZS 13408.610485
VES 53.921264
VND 26497.055016
VUV 123.436666
WST 2.872503
XAF 652.34102
XAG 0.035866
XAU 0.000399
XCD 2.809873
XDR 0.796684
XOF 652.3379
XPF 119.331742
YER 260.317869
ZAR 19.576915
ZMK 9358.657373
ZMW 28.937597
ZWL 334.786773
  • RYCEF

    -0.0900

    7.17

    -1.26%

  • RBGPF

    -0.6600

    59.84

    -1.1%

  • CMSD

    -0.1100

    23.21

    -0.47%

  • BCC

    -1.4200

    119.21

    -1.19%

  • SCS

    -0.1300

    11.74

    -1.11%

  • CMSC

    -0.1300

    23.33

    -0.56%

  • NGG

    -0.0700

    59.24

    -0.12%

  • BCE

    -0.1500

    22.51

    -0.67%

  • RIO

    -0.2950

    58.715

    -0.5%

  • VOD

    -0.0200

    8.41

    -0.24%

  • RELX

    -0.1500

    45.43

    -0.33%

  • JRI

    -0.1020

    12.048

    -0.85%

  • GSK

    -0.4050

    33.675

    -1.2%

  • AZN

    -0.6650

    65.595

    -1.01%

  • BTI

    -0.2150

    36.095

    -0.6%

  • BP

    0.1510

    29.111

    +0.52%

Georgia set to inaugurate disputed president amid political crisis
Georgia set to inaugurate disputed president amid political crisis / Photo: Vano SHLAMOV - AFP/File

Georgia set to inaugurate disputed president amid political crisis

Georgia is set to inaugurate on Sunday a ruling party loyalist as president, after his election was declared "illegitimate" by the outgoing leader and the pro-Western opposition.

Text size:

Former footballer Mikheil Kavelashvili's inauguration is expected to further escalate the political crisis which has seen mass pro-EU demonstrations.

The Black Sea nation has been in turmoil since October's disputed parliamentary elections and the government's decision to shelve European Union accession talks.

Thousands have taken to the streets daily for a month, accusing the increasingly repressive government of derailing Tbilisi's European Union bid, with a fresh rally planned outside parliament during Kavelashvili's inauguration.

For the first time in Georgia's history, the swearing-in ceremony will be held behind closed doors in the parliamentary chamber.

On December 14, an electoral college controlled by the ruling Georgian Dream party installed the far-right ex-Manchester City striker as the country's next figurehead leader.

But outgoing President Salome Zurabishvili, whose mandate ends with the new leader's inauguration, has vowed to not step down until the government announces fresh parliamentary elections.

Opposition parties have refused to enter the newly elected parliament, while Zurabishvili has declared the legislature, the government and president-elect "illegitimate".

Addressing tens of thousands of protesters last Sunday, she said that a re-run of the "illegitimate" election would be the "formula to resolve such a crisis".

- 'Many years of imprisonment' -

Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze's announcement on November 28 that Tbilisi would not seek the opening of EU accession talks until 2028 triggered a month of daily mass protests which are still ongoing.

It remains unclear how Georgian Dream would react if Zurabishvili refuses to leave the presidential palace.

She is hugely popular among protesters who see her as a beacon of Georgia's European aspirations.

Many have vowed to defend her against any attempted eviction from office.

Kobakhidze said Zurabishvili's failure to vacate the Orbeliani Palace "would constitute a criminal offence punishable by many years of imprisonment".

Mirroring language reminiscent of that used by the Kremlin about its political opponents, Kobakhidze has described protesters as "violent groups" controlled by a "liberal fascist" opposition and ruled out calling fresh elections.

In the first 10 days of protests, riot police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse demonstrators -- some of whom threw fireworks and stones.

The interior ministry reported more than 400 arrests, while the country's top human rights official, ombudsman Levan Ioseliani and Amnesty International have accused security forces of "torturing" those detained.

- Pro-Russian tilt -

The reported police brutality has drawn growing international condemnation, with Washington and several European countries imposing visa bans on Georgian Dream officials.

On Friday, the United States imposed sanctions on Georgia's former prime minister and the honorary chairman of Georgian Dream, Bidzina Ivanishvili, saying he undermined the country's democratic future for Russia's benefit.

Oligarch Ivanishvili, Georgia's richest man, is widely regarded as the de facto leader of Georgia, despite holding no official position.

Last week, the United States and Britain slapped sanctions on Georgia's interior minister and other senior officials over a clampdown on pro-Western demonstrators.

Constitutional law experts -- including one author of Georgia's constitution, Vakhtang Khmaladze -- have also said the new parliament, government and president-elect are "illegitimate".

That is because a court ruling on Zurabishvili's bid to get parliamentary poll results annulled was still pending at the time the chamber convened. The court eventually ruled the case inadmissible.

Tensions have ratcheted higher in Georgia since 2022, driven by the ruling party's shift from its initially liberal, pro-Western agenda to what critics have denounced as an ultra-conservative pro-Russian tilt.

That has led Brussels to freeze Georgia's EU accession process.

(T.Renner--BBZ)