“It is significant that the regime is targeting education because, until now, the regime only affected society physically – now it is directly attacking Georgia,” said Salome Zurabishvili, the 5th President of Georgia, during a public discussion on the education reform.

According to her, “An attack on education is an attack on our soul, our identity, and our Georgian spirit.”

“Education is the backbone of society, and a society without education is a society of slaves – it cannot even be called a society. It is merely a gathering of slaves if there is no education. It is significant that the regime is targeting education because, until now, the regime only affected society physically – repressive laws, arrests, imprisonment, torture – this is physical violence, an attempt to restrict the actions of society. But in this regard, the regime has not succeeded in enslaving society, and the protest that exists within society troubles the regime.

This is a direct attack on Georgia, as well as a spiritual attack on what is essential to us. Every normal government invests in education and spends significant funds on it, but the kind of education that is crucial for Georgia is rare in other countries because our history is built on education. Saint Nino, who enlightened us, the Assyrian fathers, Ikalto, and Gelati – all of this is inseparable from our culture and identity. An attack on education is an attack on our soul, identity, and Georgian spirit. For us, education is closely linked to independence. It is no coincidence that the State University was founded in 1918, before independence, by the Society for the Dissemination of Literacy. It was in this university that education and independent thought were defended. Perhaps the country’s independence could no longer be defended after 1921, but Javakhishvili sent students to fight alongside the Junkers, the university they now target.

For us, education is dependent on and inseparable from freedom. Our educated society was open to the world and developed alongside it. This is why Georgian and European cultures were closely connected, because nothing ever separated us from the civilized world, including Iran – when it was civilized, we grew together with it.

Closed education cannot survive for long. The purpose of this harmful policy is to isolate us from the outside world and keep us closed off. It is unimaginable that the leaders of a country would ridicule and dismiss their own universities in this way. The merging of universities is also a form of mockery. As artificial intelligence enters at such a rapid pace, countries that fall behind will become colonies. We will remain a small, closed province, with conformist knowledge. High-level corruption will also return. Meanwhile, the two main figures behind this reform – Shalva Papuashvili and Irakli Kobakhidze – somehow received their education in Germany. Their children and the children of the pseudo-elite study in Europe, which will become impossible once this reform is implemented.

They will target each field and sector individually. Private universities today may think they can survive – they will not. We have become accustomed to silence; everyone foolishly hopes to survive on their own, keeping their position, income, and small freedoms, but this will affect everyone,” said Salome Zurabishvili.