Mikhail Kavelashvili, new president of Georgia
Mikhail Kavelashvili, a critic of the West and loyal to the government that froze EU accession talks until 2028, was elected this Saturday. Football is played and red cards — and diplomas — are shown outside the parliament.
The politician loyal to the government Mikhail Kavelashvili was elected President of Georgia this Saturday, during a vote in parliament that was boycotted by the opposition, which demonstrates in front of parliament.
According to the Central Election Commission of the Caucasian republic, Kavelashvili received the support from 224 of the 300 deputies national and municipal representatives who participated in the vote, replaces opposition leader Salome Zurabishvili, who left office for not recognizing the legitimacy of the legislative result of last October’s parliamentary elections.
Opposition groups continue to refuse to recognize the victory of the ruling Georgian Dream party in the October elections and have warned that it is a party close to Russia and which is moving the country away from the path of European integration.
The opposition wants new legislative elections to be called. Like this, hundreds of people started playing football in front of parliament this Saturday, as a form of protest against the election of the 53-year-old former Manchester City striker.
🇬🇪⚽️Georgian protesters play football in front of the Parliament
This is the demonstrators’ way of reminding everyone that the only presidential candidate, Mikheil Kavelashvili, is a former football player. He was a striker for the Georgian national team and played on the…
— ☦️Jacob🇷🇺Charite☦️ Iagov (@jaccocharite)
Many protesters revealed themselves to be “arbiters” and also showed a red card to the new presidential election.
In front of the parliament in Tbilisi 🇬🇪, pro-EU demonstrators are showing red cards 🟥 as the Electoral College is electing ex-footballer Micheil Kavelashvili, an anti-Western candidate of the Kremlin-aligned Georgian Dream regime, as president.
— Jakub Bielamowicz (@KubaBielamowicz)
Others opt for a similarly ironic approach: they display certificates and diplomas with their qualifications at the top and “ask” the new president to show his.
In Georgia protestors are showing off their qualifications and are asking the soon to be (Russian) appointed candidate Mikhail Kavelashvili to show his, as he never had any higher education. The election is being deemed improper as his election is not by the Georgian population.
— raging545 (@raging545)
The situation led the authorities to order the sending of reinforcements to the vicinity of parliament, the scene of protests against the Government for more than two weeks, which estimates that more than 400 people have been arrested since the beginning of the demonstrations.
The protests have intensified nightly, attracting tens of thousands of participants who criticize the government’s authoritarian measures and its orientation towards Russia.
Harsh critic of the Westpro-European Union replacement Zourabichvili is elected at a time when the government has decided to freeze EU accession negotiations until 2028.
Former football player and leader of the anti-Western group People Power, he was appointed by Bidzina Ivanishvili, a billionaire and former prime minister with influence in Georgian politics.
