EurasiaNet Civil Society - Georgian Opposition Announces Presidential Candidate

CIVIL SOCIETY

GEORGIAN OPPOSITION ANNOUNCES PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE
Molly Corso 11/12/07

With Georgia’s presidential race less than two months away, an opposition coalition has announced a unified candidate and plans to radically restructure the government.

The coalition, which has overseen a recent run of national demonstrations, nominated non-party parliamentarian Levan Gachechiladze as its candidate for the January 5 presidential election. Gachechiladze would likely be one of several opposition hopefuls running against incumbent President Mikheil Saakashvili. Former Foreign Minister Salome Zourabichvili, head of the Georgia’s Way Party, has been tapped for the post of prime minister. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive].

To international audiences, French-born Zourabichvili is by far the better known. The 43-year-old Gachechiladze, by profession a businessman, was a leader of the opposition protests and also a participant in the hunger strikes outside parliament that ended with the November 7 police clean-up operation. He is the brother of Georgian pop star Utsnobi (The Stranger).

How long Gachechiladze, if elected, would remain in power, however, is debatable. The two describe themselves as a team that intends to oversee Georgia’s transition from a presidential form of government to a parliamentary republic. Gachechiladze told reporters at a November 12 press conference that as soon as the necessary reforms are in place for a "parliamentary system," he would resign as president.

Zourabichvili echoed that statement, describing the duo as a "temporary team" working together to win the elections, and then stay in power "during a transitional period" until parliamentary elections can be held. There is no decision as yet, she added, whether the ten-party opposition coalition will stay united for the vote. One party from the original alliance, the Labor Party, has already announced intentions to name its own candidate.

"Our chances of winning are good because we have the whole country behind us," Zourabichvili asserted, adding that Gachechiladze has a "very high rating" with the Georgian public.

The Republican Party, whose leaders were at the center of the opposition’s five-day run of demonstrations against Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, hailed the choice. "We are with him, he is with us and we are with the people," Davit Usupashvili, a leader of the Republican Party said. "This is not the replacement of Saakashvili."

Meanwhile, talks between the government and the opposition are threatening to stall. Representatives of five of the 10 opposition coalition parties have met with Parliamentary Speaker Nino Burjanadze, Deputy Parliamentary Speaker Mikheil Machavariani, National Movement Party MP Giga Bokeria and parliamentary majority leader Maia Nadiradze, also an MP for the ruling National Movement Party. In a November 12 interview with EurasiaNet, Conservative Party leader Kakha Kukhava, a participant in the talks, said the negotiations are going "poorly," adding that the government "refuses" to compromise. The opposition has stated that lifting the state of emergency and allowing news media to freely function � including the recently closed Imedi television station � are priorities in the talks. A meeting at 7pm on November 12 would be the last, Kukhava said, "if no compromise is reached."

Public attention is now focusing on the upcoming presidential race. At least five potential candidates, including New Rights Party leader Davit Gamkrelidze and Government of the Future Party founder Gia Maisashvili, have so far expressed interest in the race. Leading the nominations are two opposition leaders currently wanted for questioning by the Georgian government: media-tycoon-turned-opposition-financier Badri Patarkatsishvili and Shalva Natelashvili, the leader of the Labor Party.

On November 11, one day after the General Prosecutor’s office announced Patarkatsishvili is wanted for "interrogation as a suspect" for allegedly trying to overthrow the government, the multi-millionaire announced he would run for president on January 5.

According to a Ministry of Internal Affairs spokesperson, Shota Utiashvili, officials want to question the tycoon about a November 8 statement that he would "do everything possible � to free Georgia from this fascist regime." The declaration came one day after clashes between police and opposition protestors in Tbilisi that left hundreds hospitalized. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive].

Opposition coalition members have so far given no sign of political support for Patarkatsishvili’s candidacy. The white-mustachioed oligarch is not the only potential candidate facing criminal charges. On November 12, the Labor Party declared a presidential bid by their founder, Shalva Natelashvili. The prosecutor’s office announced on November 9 that Natelashvili, whose whereabouts are unknown, is wanted for alleged espionage and attempting to overthrow the government. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive].

On November 10, however, President Mikheil Saakashvili invited Natelashvili to participate in the elections. Jokingly referring to the opposition leader as the "chief of the people," the president described the Labor Party head as "hiding in a cellar" somewhere and assured listeners that "[h]e won’t be arrested." The prosecutor’s office subsequently announced that Natelashvili was wanted only for questioning.

Labor Party General Director Ioseb Shatberashvili states that Natelashvili will make an official announcement about his candidacy after he receives "guarantees" of safety from Georgian and international officials, he said. He has petitioned for asylum for himself and his family in Switzerland, Germany and the United States, according to Shatberashvili. Ironically, the party leader’s candidacy was announced without his agreement, Shatberashvili added.

Some questions, however, exist about whether either Patarkatsishvili or Natelashvili are even able to register as presidential candidates. The Georgian constitution and election code do not specify if a person wanted on criminal charges can run for the office.

One election specialist, though, maintains that the Georgian state operates under the presumption of innocence. According to the International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy program manager Eka Siradze-Delaunay, this means that a candidate can run for president as long as he has not officially been charged and found guilty by a court.

The residency requirement may be an additional snag for Patarkatsishvili, who returned to his homeland from Russia only in 2001. The constitution stipulates that a person must have been a physical resident of Georgia for 15 years in order to be eligible as a candidate.

Mary Japaridze, a lawyer with the Article 42 non-governmental organization, though, adds that so long as Patarkatsishvili has spent the two years prior to the vote in Georgia and has overall spent 15 years of his life in the country, he is eligible to run.

Nonetheless, the requirements are clearly worrying the tycoon. Among the conditions recently listed by Patarkatsishvili to ensure a democratic electoral environment is removing "all artificially created barriers" against registering as a presidential candidate.

Editor�s Note: Molly Corso is a freelance reporter based in Tbilisi. Caucasus News Editor Elizabeth Owen in Tbilisi contributed reporting to this story.

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