Opposition Alliance announces joint campaign against Ivanishvili regime, building to mass rally on 28 November

“No matter how many political parties Ivanishvili bans, the goal of the democratic opposition remains unchanged: expanding peaceful and principled resistance until the regime surrenders what it usurped—free and fair elections,” reads a joint statement released by the Opposition Alliance.

The Opposition Alliance representatives announced a gathering outside the 1st Building of Tbilisi State University (TSU) on 25 October.

They explained that they are launching a campaign to stage a major mass rally on November 28.

“The Georgian people deserve better. A Georgia without Ivanishvili. By banning opposition parties, Ivanishvili is attempting to demonstrate force. He wants to convince the Georgian people that his regime is irreplaceable and compel society to accept systemic poverty, corruption, lack of prospects, and mass emigration, to accept isolation from Europe and the United States, leaving us standing alone before Russia, which is tantamount to losing Georgian statehood. What he wants is one thing, but what we allow him to accomplish is another. The truth is, this reckless move only exposes his crisis of legitimacy. It proves that he holds power illegally and relies entirely on bans and repression to keep it.

In reality, through this desperate move, Ivanishvili admits that he does not trust the Georgian people; he fears free choice. That is precisely why he is stripping over a million voters of their right to choose and disenfranchising roughly as many emigrants.

He is right to be afraid, because Ivanishvili has no answers to systemic poverty, high prices, families torn apart by emigration, the quality of education, corruption, unemployment, or Georgia’s Euro-Atlantic future- nothing that genuinely concerns the Georgian people.

It is precisely to escape this accountability that he is banning the prospect of a better future, seeking in this manner to retain usurped power so that he may continue plundering and impoverishing the Georgian people unimpeded. But no matter how many parties Ivanishvili bans, our objective as the democratic opposition does not change: expanding peaceful and principled resistance until we force the regime to surrender what it usurped: free and fair elections. Whatever bans Ivanishvili puts on paper, we firmly believe that Georgian society will not yield its right to decide for itself whom to entrust with its future, nor will it forfeit the prospect of living in a fair, secure Georgia where honest labour is valued and the quality of life is European.

On 25 October, we will assemble outside Tbilisi State University’s 1st Building to launch the Opposition Alliance’s joint campaign for a Georgia without Ivanishvili, because the Georgian people deserve better. The campaign aims to organise a major rally in Tbilisi on 28 November for a Georgia where citizens are free and protected, families are strong, and the standard of living is European. The Georgian people will decide their own future without Ivanishvili. See you on 25 October at 19:00 outside TSU,” the Opposition Alliance stated.

The press briefing was attended by representatives of the Opposition Alliance, including Nika Gvaramia, Gigi Tsereteli, and Tamar Chergoleishvili.