Statement of 15 November 2019 on the failure to enact proportional system in Georgia

Yesterday, the Parliament of Georgia voted down the constitutional amendment envisaging the transition to the fully proportional system for the 2020 parliamentary elections. Surprisingly enough, the decisive opposition to the bill came from within the ruling Georgian Dream coalition itself.

Obviously, it is not up to us, Members of the European Parliament, to judge whether or not the planned enactment of the proportional system was the best option for Georgia, as it should be primarily the choice of the Georgian citizens and their elected representatives.

That said, we had observed, since the summer, a clear and multi-partisan consensus over this change, as highlighted by a nationwide consultation process. Under these circumstances, this quite unexpected U-turn may send a wrong signal, further stoking the sharp polarisation of political life in the run-up of the parliamentary elections.

As a result of the vote, several MPs have announced that they were leaving the Georgian Dream coalition and resigning from their positions - among them are First Vice-Speaker Tamar Chugoshvili, Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee Sofio Katsarava and Chair of the Committee on European Integration, Co-Chair of the EU-Georgia Parliamentary Association Committee Tamar Khulordava - all key interlocutors to the West.

We would like to express our sincere gratitude to Ms Tamar Khulordava for her outstanding contribution to the rapprochement between the Parliament of Georgia and the European Parliament, and wish her all the best in her future endeavours. We understand that Ms Khulordava will remain acting in her position until her successor is appointed by the parliamentary majority.

We hope that this transitional process will go as smoothly as possible, and call on all political forces to take into account the higher interest of Georgia and its Euro-Atlantic integration path. We also look forward to continuing our joint work, not least within the framework of our Parliamentary Association Committee, the next meeting of which is scheduled in February 2020.