UNM’s Parulava: If anyone owes an apology, it is Georgian Dream for putting our democracy and statehood in existential peril

“If anyone in this country owes an apology, it is Georgian Dream and its bandit apparatus. We are now seeing Machavariani posture publicly because he has lost his political godfather and protector; Mamuka Mdinaradze is no longer in politics. He will find it difficult to gain a foothold within Georgian Dream. Consequently, he is now resorting to grandstanding statements,” declared United National Movement (UNM) member Lasha Parulava in response to a social media post by Levan Machavariani.

Parulava asserted that the collective ruling regime is attacking an opposition operating under systemic repression and terror.

“The Machavarianis, this collective Georgian Dream gang, are attacking an opposition that is subjected to repression and terror while continuing its struggle. This fight will not only be carried through to the very end, but it will culminate in victory. The Georgian public will witness it. If anyone owes an apology, it is Georgian Dream, which has subjected the Georgian people to repression and terror. They intend to ban political parties through a Constitutional Court that effectively no longer exists; an authentic reality already created by Garibashvili.

If anyone in this country has an apology to make, it is Bidzina Ivanishvili and the members of Georgian Dream, who have exposed our country, our democracy, and our statehood to existential threat. Georgian society and the democratic opposition are striving to avert this danger,” Parulava stated.

Parulava emphasised that the entire international community continues to highlight the decline of democracy in Georgia.

“Lest we forget, Bidzina Ivanishvili remains sanctioned by the United States for advancing Russian interests. Members of the Georgian Dream cabinet face sanctions from the United Kingdom and the European Union; they do not represent the Government of Georgia, but rather the government of Georgian Dream and Ivanishvili. In this country, we are fighting for our national independence, freedom, democracy, and statehood. President Saakashvili, the Chairman of our Political Council, Levan Khabeishvili, and our Tbilisi organisational leader, Irakli Nadiradze, are paying the price of this struggle through imprisonment. We are in this fight and will remain in it to the end, until victory is achieved. No matter what repression or terror Russian Dream inflicts upon us, we will stand firm, because this is our country and we will yield it to no one. Georgia will not and cannot be Russified,” Parulava added.

The statement follows a social media post by Georgian Dream member Levan Machavariani, who wrote: “To the foreign-agent opposition parties, wealthy NGOs, and ultra-left pseudo-liberal activists: you are the enemies of Georgia. Your actions aimed at unsettling the country have become so blatant and undisguised that even a large portion of your own supporters now realise that Georgian Dream, led by Bidzina Ivanishvili, is the sole guarantor of peace and stability in Georgia. Together with the Georgian people, we will remind you daily that for all your malice and filth, you owe an apology to the overwhelming majority of our society.”