"Georgian Dream" has this attitude: "The dog barks, the caravan moves on"... This is the wrong path," said David Darchiashvili, a professor at Ilia State University and former member of Parliament, on PalitraNews' "Day Newsroom" program.
According to him, "Georgian Dream" is creating a system that keeps the population powerless and vulnerable while preparing for possible uncontrollable actions.
"This has shown that the political crisis is deepening, the country's trajectory, both domestic and foreign political situations, are heading toward a downfall. The protest has also shown that a large part of society, especially those who care about politics, the identity of the nation, and its future, are resolutely inclined to protest. How long can this be ignored... All we see from the government is shameless ignorance. They do not want dialogue with their own people. They have their supporters, who, for various reasons, have shown complete loyalty to the government over the years, and they only talk to them.
Overall, 'Georgian Dream' is strategically very weak. Tactically, in the short term, it may appear strong, because they are taking the path of repression. They have money, full influence over law enforcement structures, and this might make people think that "nothing changes." But strategically, such political systems are very vulnerable. Even a small event could quickly turn everything upside down. Therefore, systems based on democracy and pluralistic checks and balances are better than these dictatorial models. No one is guaranteed, including the highest authority, in terms of their safety when the system is dictatorial, and all it does is divide society and sow hatred. We cannot say that it has somehow strengthened. It is impossible for crisis and strength to coincide, even if they have sufficient financial resources at this moment to stay in power," Darchiashvili said.
He added that "Georgian Dream" does not recognize the changing reality and crisis and believes that "this can go on indefinitely."
"They shamelessly deny the changing reality, they deny the crisis, and therefore do not understand the importance of dialogue as a way out of such a crisis. They think it will go on endlessly. But where is the limit of this endlessness? It is clear that there are dictatorial states in the world that do not recognize their opponents. They think this can go on forever. I don't think so. I know that everyone eventually falls when they take the wrong path. It is wrong to treat your population as if they are not people, or not even consider them human beings, when more than half of them, or even fewer, are not on your side. This is their attitude. "The dog barks, the caravan moves on"—if the actual ruler of this country knew these proverbs, they might come to mind, but this is the wrong path. It inevitably ends in worse crises. The fact that we have crises shows that, on the one hand, protests do not end, and on the other hand, the government and Georgia’s image are being hit repeatedly on the international stage. When we took our first steps toward independence, one of the important steps was membership in the Council of Europe. History does not remember a situation where the Georgian delegation's right to vote in the Council of Europe was suspended," Darchiashvili said.
He also stated that "changing the situation requires that those protesting are not treated sadistically."
"If the Georgian political crisis and the functioning of the dictatorial regime do not end after April, we should expect the same—rough and shameless responses to this important European institution and continued disregard for human rights. If anything changes, we will witness fundamental changes before April. I cannot tell you how long this government will have the endurance to last," Darghiashvili said.
Darghiashvili also discussed the case of the founder of "Batumelebi," Mzia Amaglobeli, and responded to the question of what it means when the system remains silent about her health condition. He assessed that the health minister, who refuses to answer questions, might "be afraid, be tolerant, or perhaps feel disgust and a desire for revenge toward everyone critical."
"This is all for a specific person’s power. They want to be seen as a ruler, a leader of a gang, and how could anyone touch them? This is mafia logic. Feudal lords acted like this in the Middle Ages, in the 21st century, it's mafia. Another issue is that the entire Georgian law enforcement system does not understand the sense of law or the ethics of justice. It seems they are not taught this. Or, those people, some of whom graduated from strange institutions and have strange diplomas, probably didn’t learn this. They are stuck in formal logic, where if someone touches a formal person, that person is undeniably punishable. They do not understand the context that the law itself was violated by that formal person. They violated ethics and morality, and the state appeared as complete evil toward a specific individual. It is absolute evil when a woman who protested is insulted in a way we know, and her perfectly logical, emotional, sincere, and just response is manipulated to fit certain articles of your legal system, the context is erased, and repressions continue against her," Darchiashvili said.