“Attitudes in Georgian society are changing”: Georgian Parliament official slams European Parliament resolution

Levan Machavariani, an MP from the ruling Georgian Dream party and Deputy Chair of the parliamentary faction of the ruling party, on Wednesday criticised the European Parliament’s recent resolution on Georgia, calling it repetitive and irrelevant to the Georgian public.

In his remarks, Machavariani warned that such actions by EU officials were negatively influencing public perception of European institutions.

“This is the umpteenth resolution; I’ve lost count, so we no longer pay attention to it, and for the absolute majority of our society, this is no longer interesting. Such resolutions might have been interesting and caused concern three, four, or five years ago, but today Georgians are no longer interested, as this is already the sixth resolution where they keep repeating the same content. There is constant talk about releasing Mikheil Saakashvili and about elections. I don’t understand why Eurobureaucrats don’t have their finger on the pulse or why they are doing this”, Machavariani said.

Machavariani expressed concern over what he termed the “absurd statements” and “interventionist policies” of European officials, claiming they were shaping negative sentiments amongst the Georgian population.

The European Parliament on Wednesday adopted the resolution on Georgia. The resolution calls for the immediate release of Mikheil Saakashvili, the holding of new parliamentary elections, and the recognition of Salome Zourabichvili's legitimacy as President.