Georgian Parliament official accuses UNM of seeking to dominate opposition and marginalise rival parties

Nikololoz Samkharadze, the Chair of the Foreign Relations Committee of the Georgian Parliament, on Thursday said that the main goal of the opposition United National Movement (UNM) party is to monopolise the opposition space and marginalise other political parties.

In his remarks, Samkharadze noted that the UNM had previously operated with violations, including breaches of moral standards, and is now attempting to regain its lost influence within the opposition.

“Until now, they have operated with violations, including violations of moral principles. It is good that [opposition leader] Tina Bokuchava has come to realise this, but it happened only after she personally experienced what her party had done to Georgian citizens when it was in power - when it used violence against them and seized their homes and property. They did this because they disregarded the law, rules, and basic human values”, he said.

“The United National Movement is trying to somehow regain the position it has lost in the so-called opposition spectrum. Their main objective is to monopolise the opposition. They are trying to suppress other smaller or independent parties so that they themselves remain in the opposition. Unfortunately, they succeeded in doing this for years, but this is not good for the country’s democracy. I hope their efforts will fail and they will not regain the status of the main opposition force”, Samkharadze concluded.