Elene Khoshtaria: If we don’t listen to each other, we’ll all go over the edge

“If we don’t listen to each other, we’ll all go over the edge. There are red lines that no group has ever crossed, and I believe never will. There are tactical issues in this struggle that we must constantly debate. Criticism is welcome, but don’t break down an open door,” – wrote Elene Khoshtaria, one of the leaders of the Coalition for Change, on social media.

She emphasized the importance of preserving the spirit of unity, which is critical for the ongoing struggle.

“Debate over tactics, criticism, questions – not only are these helpful, they are absolutely necessary. So, for a healthy environment, this should be a norm. If we don’t listen to each other, we’ll all go over the edge.

At the same time, during these debates, it's important to maintain the spirit of unity, which is essential for the fight. So, we must listen to each other attentively and with respect. That’s exactly how I approach every opinion expressed on any platform.

As for yesterday’s broadcast:

Of course, I had no intention of speaking about any specific group. I was surprised when one group or coalition somehow interpreted it as referring to themselves. Yesterday, I was trying to explain that just because months have passed in this fight, that doesn't mean the time has been wasted or that it’s been ineffective. It’s our conscious choice not to engage in violent actions like those we saw in the 1990s, but instead to follow a principled and firm resistance that will dismantle the regime. This resistance doesn’t mean being passive or weak – and how could it, when I myself have been in numerous physical confrontations with abusive police officers? And I will continue to stand up in that way, because it is just and right.

Apparently, I didn’t express myself clearly enough, since it caused such disagreement.

There are ‘red lines’ that no group has ever crossed, and I believe never will. And there are tactical issues we must always be discussing.

So criticism is welcome – but don’t break down an open door.

Respect to all my fellow fighters,” – wrote Khoshtaria.

For context: Yesterday, Elene Khoshtaria said on Formula TV:

“We are not in the kind of fight where one large rally takes place and it all ends there. I’ll say it openly – violent overthrow, which some people support, is not our path. We will not promote it, we will not carry it out – on the contrary, we will prevent it. Because that kind of scenario may serve only the interests of Russia and Georgian Dream. There have been historical moments where people have taken up arms and brought down regimes overnight, but that’s not what we want. This country neither needs that nor can afford it.”