Parliament Speaker: every organisation, person in Georgia, spreading “hate speech, disinformation”, funded from EU budget

Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Wednesday claimed that “every organisation and every person in Georgia who spreads hate speech, disinformation, and does not recognise democracy is, without exception, funded from the European Union budget”.

Speaking to journalists, Papuashvili also criticised a recent European Parliament resolution, highlighting what he called “disinformation” contained within it and asserting that such actions undermine trust in the European Union.

He placed responsibility for this squarely on the shoulders of the EU Ambassador to Georgia.

“Today, every organisation and every person in Georgia that spreads hate speech, disinformation, and does not recognise democracy is, without exception, funded from the European Union budget”, he said.

“This is the disinformation being spread against Georgia from Brussels. This resolution was adopted in the European Parliament in the presence of the Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos, with her praise and applause. Let me remind you that this resolution also demands the release of [imprisoned former President] Mikheil Saakashvili. When such disinformation is written in Brussels’ official documents, it naturally casts another shadow on trust in EU institutions”, he continued.

Papuashvili expressed disappointment that the EU Ambassador had not distanced himself from the resolution, suggesting this contributes to the spread of “lies” in Georgia.

“Unfortunately, the EU Ambassador [Paweł Herczyński] has not yet distanced himself from this resolution, thereby facilitating the spread of this lie in Georgia. We see an attack on Georgian democracy unfolding on several fronts: first, the European Parliament’s resolution, which spreads lies about the elections; second, the EU Ambassador, who does not distance himself from this resolution and does not expose its disinformation; third, the NGOs funded by the EU Embassy, which do not recognise elections or democratic institutions, and yet the EU Ambassador continues to fund them. All of this is an attack on Georgian democracy, and unfortunately, the EU Ambassador is one of the accomplices in this attack”, Papuashvili stressed.

He further challenged Brussels to address Georgia’s concerns, stating that “we heard the statement from Brussels’ spokesperson regarding disinformation. Let everyone, including those in Brussels, apologise before accusing Georgians of disinformation. We have cited a million facts, and not a single one has been refuted by this spokesperson. Where are the answers to the questions we are posing? Why does the EU fund organisations that do not recognise democratic institutions?”