Archil Gorduladze, Chairman of the Parliament’s Legal Affairs Committee, clarified regarding the “Georgian Dream” initiative to ban individuals from political activities, addressing whether their passive electoral rights would be restricted for a specific term or permanently.

As Gorduladze stated during the session, “Just as Adolf Hitler would not have changed his morals, neither will the individuals united in the ‘Collective National Movement,’ who make genuinely Nazi-like statements.”

According to Gorduladze, the legislative amendment does not specify any term, nor would it be appropriate to do so.

“The answer to this question is simple—imagine a Nazi party was banned. Would the goal only be to cancel its registration, or would it be to renounce Nazism and rehabilitate? Of course not. Accordingly, individuals who created Nazism, those who formed a Nazi party, would also be banned from political activities. If we imagine the events of World War II had unfolded differently, for how long could Adolf Hitler have been banned from founding a party? Of course, lifelong, because Adolf Hitler would never have changed his morals. The same applies to those now united in the ‘Collective National Movement,’ who make genuinely Nazi-like statements—just as Adolf Hitler would not have changed his morals, they will not change, nor will they have any desire to renounce betraying the country, violating the Constitution, overthrowing a legitimately elected government, undermining territorial integrity, and so on. Therefore, no term is specified in the law, nor would it be appropriate to include one. It’s simple. A person who betrays the country was, is, and will remain a traitor,” Gorduladze stated.

For context, today the Parliament is reviewing, in the first reading and under an expedited procedure, a legislative package that, if enacted, will prohibit specific individuals from engaging in party activities, holding political positions, and exercising passive electoral rights.

Under the “Georgian Dream” initiative, amendments are being made to the Organic Law “On the Constitutional Court of Georgia,” the Organic Law “On Political Associations of Citizens,” the “Election Code,” and the “Criminal Code.”

According to the legislative package, individuals associated with a political party that violates the Constitution will be stripped of their passive electoral rights—they will no longer be able to run in parliamentary or local self-government elections. They will be prohibited from being members of any political party, and the creation of a new party by such individuals will be inadmissible. Additionally, they will be barred from holding high-ranking positions or leading any body provided for by the Constitution.