President’s Annual Report Covers Most Important Issues of the Year

The President of Georgia, Giorgi Margvelashvili, delivered his annual address to the nation at the parliament building in Kutaisi on Friday, covering the most important issues of domestic and foreign policy.

At the beginning of his speech, the President referenced his address to the new parliament in November 2016. This speech was given after the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party gained a constitutional majority with 116 MPs in the 160-seat legislative body.

“I stated that holding a constitutional majority by a single party within Parliament threatened a concentration of power, but at the same time, it was an opportunity for bold reforms and initiatives. What have we actually received after five months?” the president asked. Margvelashvili stressed that the possible political threat has turned into a serious problem, while the dynamics of reforms is not promising. “Unfortunately, the ruling party has rejected the dialogue process and isolated itself,” he said.

“I look forward to the time when the winning political power starts seeking allies, not enemies; as I believe that unification of the country and society must be the greatest ambition a politician has,” the president said, calling on GD to get engaged in a dialogue and institutional cooperation.

The President also talked about his campaign ‘Constitution for All,’ which aims to make amendments to the constitution of the country. “People need more democracy, not weakening but strengthening self-governance…. Society wants more involvement in the decision-making process and clearer social protection guarantees to be reflected in the Constitution,” he said.

The President referred to the alleged plans by GD to change the presidential elections from a direct vote to an indirect process. “We cannot deprive people of the right to elect the President. The presidential election needs to be adjusted to the interests of society, not to the wish of current or former presidents or prime-Ministers, for the creation of an effective balance of power,” he stressed.

Speaking about the economy, the President said that the most acute problems remain unchanged. “Jobs, poverty, increasing prices, miserable pensions and national currency instability—these are the actual problems of our society, which is obvious without any research,” he noted.

Margvelashvili believes that state and private sectors need to work jointly for mutual reinforcement of the country’s economy. “It is important for the country to further stimulate local production. With this aim, I have initiated the campaign ‘Ask for Georgian,’ which contributes to economic growth, job creation and strengthening the national currency. In the frame of this campaign, in parallel to popularization of local production, we have created a loyalty card which allows consumers to get bonuses when purchasing Georgian products,” the President explained. His office distributed these special cards to the MPs to get them involved in his campaign.

While delivering his speech, the President also mentioned Georgia’s relationship with the European Union (EU) and NATO, saying entry of visa-free travel for Georgian citizens to the EU’s Schengen Area was a significant achievement. “Georgia’s current goal is to return to the European family and become an EU member with a strong democracy, stable institutions, human rights protection, rule of law, economic development and a European legal system,” he said.

Margvelashvili called on the country’s foreign partners to raise their voices on Georgia’s behalf at the upcoming NATO Summit this May in Brussels, which will gather only NATO member states.

The President noted that Georgia actively contributed to global security by sending its soldiers to various peacekeeping missions. He said Georgia is also participating in the strategic Black Sea security dialogue. “The security of the Black Sea starts from Georgia. A secure Black Sea is a precondition of economic cooperation and long-term peace in the region,” he added.

One of the main painful issues raised by the President was the annexation Georgia’s breakaway regions by the Russian Federation. “In response to our success, the Russian Federation is taking actions towards the factual annexation of Georgia’s occupied territories. Therefore, as in the case of the non-recognition policy, it is necessary to create the anti-annexation policy of Georgia’s occupied territories with the active engagement of our allies, and to take coordinated steps to deter the annexation,” he said.

According to Margvelashvili, the State needs to react promptly on the new dividing lines and installation of barbed wire, cases of the prohibition of Georgian language-education in Gali schools, as well as the kidnapping of Georgian citizens and the destruction of cultural heritage.

“I hope that one day artificially built walls will be destroyed… That the time will come when the divided society of Abkhazia and the Tskhinvali regions will be united, when Georgians, Abkhazians and Ossetians will be able to find one who will unite us, and when the refugees will return home safely,” the President said, adding that it was crucial to update the country’s National Security Concept, elaborate a national security strategy and further enhance the national security system.

“The proper military reserve and mobilization system, together with a strong professional army, is the main pillar of our defense capability,” he stressed.

Margvelashvili went on to lament that recent developments have demonstrated a continuing crisis in the judiciary system of the country. The President reiterated his earlier offer to invite EU experts “to identify the exact reasons and find solutions to the crisis.” Margvelashvili added that the judges themselves should become the main actors in improving the state of the judiciary system. “The struggle for independence of the judiciary system should happen in every court, every courtroom, every office and every conference room; everyone should assume this burden. Regretfully, the judges keep silent over these important issues,” he said.

To conclude his address, the President underlined that he had decided to support the appeal of citizens on the "Law on Wiretapping," which has created concern recently. “I will address the Constitutional Court with a different status—the status of a friend of the court, that will give me an opportunity to support the court in making a better decision,” he said.

The President’s speech was criticized by the GD majority.

“From my point of view, the address does not reflect the reality our country is experiencing,” Parliament Speaker Irakli Kobakhidze said. Majority member Gia Volsky said “the President should have been more prepared for his presentation.”

The opposition believes the President’s report was adequate and covered all necessary issues and problems in the country. “The President voiced all problems facing our society,” opposition United National Movement (UNM) member Nika Melia said.

Parliamentary minority Movement for Freedom-European Georgia leader, Davit Bakradze, also approved the President’s address, but noted that it should have contained more details and analysis.

The Head of the President’s Administration, Giorgi Abashishvili, said that the President’s report was entirely based on people’s thoughts and needs and did not reflect the vision of any political forces.

Thea Morrison