Georgia’s ruling party has announced its intention to initiate impeachment proceedings against President Salome Zourabichvili for her visits to the European Union without the government’s consent, reports the Georgian news agency Interpress. Irakli Kobakhidze, the leader of the Georgian Dream party, accused Zourabichvili of blatantly violating the country’s constitution, stating that the party would move forward with the impeachment process.
Kobakhidze acknowledged that the impeachment was unlikely to succeed, given that Georgian Dream would need the support of the opposition to secure enough votes in parliament. Currently, the ruling party holds a simple majority in parliament.
In 2018, Zourabichvili, a former French diplomat of Georgian origin, won Georgia’s mostly symbolic presidency with the backing of Georgian Dream. However, she has since distanced herself from the party, consistently criticizing its pro-Russian stance and lack of commitment towards Georgia’s integration into the European Union and NATO. Despite this, Georgian Dream claims to support membership in both organizations.
In March, Zourabichvili announced her intention to veto a controversial law targeting “foreign agents” endorsed by the Georgian government. Critics of Georgian Dream contend that the law was inspired by Russian legislation used to suppress dissent.
Concerns about increasing authoritarianism in Georgia have been raised by the European Union, which declined to grant candidate status to the country last year. The EU warned that such developments could jeopardize Georgia’s aspirations for EU membership.
Reporting by Felix Light.
Credit: The Star : News Feed
