Georgian Parliament Speaker: Georgia has achieved real independence and freedom over past 14 years

Georgia has achieved real independence and freedom over the past 14 years, including by limiting external interference and drawing red lines, Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili said on Friday.

“What the Georgian state and society have witnessed since October 1, 2012, is that a country can have a government that looks after the national interests of its own people and is not dependent on the interests of other countries”, Papuashvili said.

He said that during the nine years of the United National Movement’s rule, Georgia had been a tool in the hands of others, adding that the country had gradually emerged from this situation since 2012.

“The nine years of Saakashvili’s dictatorship were not only nine bloody years of dictatorship, but also nine years of being a proxy state, when the Georgian state was effectively a tool in someone else’s hands. We later heard statements suggesting that if we were told to stand on one leg, we should do so. That is the kind of government we had for nine years, until 2012”, the Speaker noted.

“Since 2012, by gradually overcoming this difficult situation, the state has fully regained the sovereignty that we won 35 years ago through bloodshed when we broke away from the Soviet Union”, Papuashvili continued.

He further discussed Georgia’s progress in terms of sovereignty, saying that reaching the country’s current position had taken time, as some foreign governments and organisations had become accustomed to interfering in Georgia’s affairs.

“These results, and the position we have reached today, required time, as certain foreign governments and organisations had become so accustomed to being involved in every aspect of our country’s affairs”, the Speaker said.

“When I became Parliament Speaker, I remember being surprised in some cases that certain ambassadors felt entitled to delve into details of parliamentary activities that are not within the remit of any country’s ambassador. I can only imagine how our ambassador would have been received had they approached the speaker of another country’s parliament and asked questions about legislative or parliamentary regulations. I wonder what kind of response our ambassador would have received in the corridors of that country’s parliament”, Papuashvili continued.

He added that the process had required time for Georgia to finally reach the point of “sovereignty”.

“In relation to a state, sovereignty translates into freedom. A free country is one that governs itself, is sovereign and, therefore, free. We have achieved this freedom, including by limiting external interference and drawing red lines. That is why these 14 years have been important: we have achieved real independence and freedom during this period”, Papuashvili said.

Asked why the public had not seen a statement from Georgian Dream founder Bidzina Ivanishvili marking the anniversary, the Parliament Speaker said Ivanishvili maintained regular contact with the political team.

“Therefore, making insinuations about whether or not a post was published is simply unserious”, Papuashvili concluded.