Georgian Parliament strips three opposition leaders of their mandates
Georgian Parliament terminated mandates of opposition MPs
The Parliament of Georgia has terminated the mandates of three opposition MPs – Badri Japaridze, Shalva Natelashvili and Elene Khoshtaria.
At the plenary session, 79 MPs voted for and 28 against the stripping opposition leaders of their mandates.
Elene Khoshtaria herself has demanded the termination of her parliamentary mandate, refusing to work in the legislature after the 2020 parliamentary elections.
The parliamentary majority cited the court decision as the basis for terminating the mandate of Badri Japaridze.
Mamuka Khazaradze and Badri Japaridze, the leaders of the Lelo party and the founders of TBC Bank, as well as the father of Vakhtang Tsereteli, a businessman and the founder of TV Pirveli, were found guilty by a court on January 12 and sentenced to seven years in prison.
The leaders of Lelo say that they will appeal this decision because, according to Badri Japaridze, there no crime has been committed.
According to Mamuka Khazaradze, where there is no justice, there is no peace. He also addressed Bidzina Ivanishvili and said that the Georgian people could not tolerate such injustice in this country.
As for Shalva Natelashvili, leader of the Labor Party, parliament terminated his mandate because of his repeated absence from parliamentary sessions, although Natelashvili states that such claims are unfounded.
Natelashvili decided to enter parliament on February 10, after a parliamentary boycott but was unable to attend this week’s plenary session because he got infected with Covid-19.
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“It is a shame when you have such a corrupt government run by one Russian oligarch. A country is hopeless when the government has no purpose and, therefore, no plan. The only thing that’s driving them is the desire to maintain personal well-being”, Mamuka Khazaradze wrote on his personal Facebook page.
According to Badri Japaridze, the first time he was ousted by a coup [Badri Japaridze was a member of the Supreme Council of Georgia of the first convocation and an ally of the first president, Zviad Gamsakhurdia}, and the second – by the ‘captured’ state.
“But, of course, this is the result of what is happening in our country. The state is captured. Therefore, the decisions that are made are unfair, illegal, and serve against the interests of the people”, says Japaridze.
The President of Georgia Salome Zurabishvili also responded to the termination of the mandates of the opposition MPs.
“Due to the internal and external challenges [ that we are facing] today, I do not agree with the termination of mandates of the MPs!”, President wrote on Facebook.
Georgian Parliament terminated mandates of opposition MPs
