Zaza Tavadze: One of the main lines of protest lies in the local elections - beyond that, there are other means of expressing protest and fighting the regime, as we see now with Elene Khoshtaria’s decision

"One of the front lines in the fight against the regime lies in participating in local elections – we must agree on neutral candidates; this is the way, this is the formula for victory," stated Zaza Tavadze, a member of the "Gakharia for Georgia" party, during an appearance on PalitraNews’ program "360 Degrees."

According to Zaza Tavadze, the "Gakharia for Georgia" party’s strategy is shared by "Lelo," and soon many others will join this strategy.

"We are saying that we intend to participate in the local self-government elections because we will not leave Tbilisi or the whole of Georgia to Ivanishvili’s regime without a fight. In our view, one of the main lines of protest lies in these elections. Beyond that, there are other means of expressing protest and fighting the regime, as we see now with what Elene Khoshtaria has decided.

One of the front lines in the fight against the regime lies in participating in local elections. Not, for example, on a representative of our party or another political entity, but on a neutral candidate if we agree that they will participate, for instance, in Tbilisi, and thus we will resist the regime – this is our strategy. 'Lelo' supports this, other political entities have discussed it, and we believe many will join us.

For us, participating in these elections is not an end in itself, nor do we want to participate just for the sake of participation. We know very well that the adoption of so-called draconian laws has catastrophically worsened the electoral environment – we know this very well. But when the fight becomes tougher and more problematic, what happens then? Should we surrender the country to Ivanishvili without a fight? I think not. Therefore, we must participate in these elections," Tavadze stated.

According to Zaza Tavadze, it would be welcome if Georgia’s fifth President, Salome Zourabichvili, becomes the opposition’s common candidate for the local elections in Tbilisi.

"Agreeing on a neutral candidate is essential and vital for this process, and if Salome Zourabichvili decides to do this, we will, of course, welcome it. This would be a very serious step forward with regard to Tbilisi," Tavadze declared.

Oleksii Reznikov - Russia, in reality, is a paper tiger
A Korean tamada: Opening of the Korean Embassy in Tbilisi
Israeli Ambassador to Georgia - Our strategy is not to have Hamas controlling the Gaza Strip - Unfortunately, the UN cooperates with Hamas, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch work in favor of Hamas