As the crucial EU decision on whether to award Georgia candidacy status approaches, the opposition and the governing party are engaging in reciprocal accusations. Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili stated that by concluding the Association Agreement with the European Union and free trade, then adopting a visa-free regime, and now submitting an official application, the government has demonstrated that it is loyal and faithfully carries out the will of the citizens. According to the Prime Minister, Georgia fulfilled all of its obligations and criteria with the European Union with precision. He added that Mr. Ilia Darchiashvili, the new Minister of Foreign Affairs, is actively interacting with his European counterparts per his instructions and has already had over twenty meetings with seventeen of them.
Recently, the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE), which comprises the largest parties in the EU, backed the three candidate states, including Ukraine, Georgia, and Moldova. The Georgian parties, which drafted the document, assert that ALDE's endorsement is crucial since this organization is the biggest and brings together the key parties of EU nations. At the same time, opposition parties demanded the resignation of the embattled prime minister, citing the governing party's accusations that the opposition was blocking the EU candidate status.
Despite being in power, according to Badri Japaridze, Secretary General of the party "LELO," the Georgian Dream is not the only political force that represents the state. Obviously, it is the role of the pro-Western opposition to demonstrate to our European allies that they have partners in our country. Even if they are in power, the Georgian Dream is not the sole political movement that represents our nation – remarked Japaridze.
Events related to Georgia’s potential EU candidacy status occurred during a rally outside the EU Office in Tbilisi, during which at least four individuals were arrested. Guram Palavandishvili's homophobic non-governmental organizations, the Society for the Protection of Children's Rights and "Zneoba," spearheaded the protest. The arrest was followed by an attempt to burn the LGBTQ flag. The primary message of the demonstrators was "citizens, members of our organization, we will do all in our power to block all of the activities scheduled for the nasty LGBT week."
Despite the fact that the organization "Tbilisi Pride" announced it does not plan to hold a "March of Dignity" this year, radical groups are still threatening to disrupt the festival planned for Pride Week. Consequently, Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs, Alexander Darakhvelidze, responded that the state would protect the rights of assembly and expression guaranteed by law and prevent incidents of violence if such occurred.
It is noteworthy that last year, on July 5, 2021, when the "March of Honor" was to be held on the central avenue of Tbilisi, hate groups gathered at the request of the priesthood and the homophobic organization "Alt-Info". They stormed the headquarters of "Tbilisi Pride" and attacked more than 50 journalists. So far, the police have not apprehended the organizers of the violence.
