Georgian Parliament Speaker accuses NGOs, donors of fueling hatred, civil division

Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Monday accused non-governmental organisations and their donors of being the primary source of incitement to hatred and attempts to sow civil discord in the country.

In his remarks, Papuashvili went on to claim that the development was followed by a campaign of hatred and hostility, allegedly coordinated by several NGOs with donor support.

“Let me remind you what these donors and their NGOs did on April 9. They blocked citizens who wanted to honour the victims of the April 9 tragedy. They tried to bring division on a day that unites the entire nation. This was done with donor funding and executed by a few NGOs”, he said.

The Speaker further emphasised that no donor had distanced themselves from this disgraceful campaign - not even when one of these NGOs had staged a protest at the home of the Vice Speaker of Parliament at midnight, where a “young child was present, or when threats were made, including death threats”.

“None of the donors funding these organisations show any respect for the Georgian public. They won’t even say it’s unacceptable, wrong, or inappropriate. Let them at least find the words, even if they say it softly”, Papuashvili concluded.