“Once we achieve a constitutional majority, we will initiate legal proceedings that will result in the United National Movement and all its satellite or successor parties being declared unconstitutional,” the statement continued.
With its statement, Georgian Dream wants to convince voters that the party must regain a constitutional majority in order to be able to keep its promises. But even without a constitutional majority, the party can already appeal to the Constitutional Court and have a party banned that “aims to overthrow or forcibly change Georgia’s constitutional order, violate the country’s independence and territorial integrity, or promote war or violence.”
Georgian Dream stated that in addition to banning UNM, the organization also intends to enforce a Russian-style law that restricts the rights of LGBTQ+ people and which the EU and human rights organizations have warned against.
The ruling party also said it wanted to amend the constitution to “peacefully restore” Georgia’s territorial integrity so that it “corresponds to the new reality.” It did not give details, but raised fears among the opposition that this could mean concessions to Russia, which threatened last year to annex the breakaway Georgian regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia.
Parliamentary elections will be held in Georgia on October 26. The six opposition parties agreed in June to work together to overthrow the ruling party, which they believe has prevented the country from joining the EU.
Dato Parulava contributed to this report.
