Parliament Speaker: Georgian Gov’t will do everything possible to ensure that “country is protected, people have peace, and Georgia and our children have future”

Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Sunday celebrated the Georgian people’s decisive support for democracy in the local self-government elections, framing them as a rejection of foreign-backed chaos, while condemning the failed coup attempt and the silence of foreign actors who supported it.

“Yesterday’s elections in Georgia have put an end, once again, to all speculations about who the Georgian people are, where the Georgian people stand, how many Georgians there are, and who can speak on their behalf. Georgian people went to the polls yesterday, which was definitely more than just local self-government elections.

Yesterday, Georgian people supported the Georgian state, the country's constitution, law and order, democracy, and national interests. I thank every voter who came to the polls, regardless of who they voted for. I thank every one of our supporters who strengthened our Government. And a special thanks to each candidate involved in Georgian Dream’s election campaign, members of our electoral headquarters, who brought our main message to the voters.

Yesterday, all alternative agendas, fabricated and false realities were put to an end. At the same time, yesterday, Georgia escaped Maidanization, bloodshed, chaos, and a return to the dark past. We survived not because some extremists or their foreign instructors came to their senses. We survived because law enforcement officers defended their country. I thank every police officer, special forces officer, security service officer, and Government security officer who yesterday, at the risk of their own lives and health, prevented internal and external enemies from disrupting the peaceful development of our country.

Internal and external forces, which have been trying to destabilise Georgia for years, attempted to stage a decisive battle against the Georgian people and suffered a bitter defeat. Yesterday, we saw people led from abroad who were ready, driven by their ambitions, hatred, and revenge, to overthrow the legitimately elected government and, along with it, to overthrow the future of Georgia, our people, and our children.

Today, it is no longer worth talking about the few adventurers who led the attempt to overthrow the Government. Their crimes have been weighed, their guilt has been measured, and they will be given the appropriate punishment. Today, it is the most shameful, cowardly, and shameless participants of yesterday’s events who must be held accountable for what they had sown and what they tried to reap. I am talking about those leaders of the radicals who actively participated in planning the crime, mobilising the people, promoting hatred. When they saw that their attempt to overthrow the Government failed, they fled and are now trying to shift the blame to the perpetrators who directly resorted to violence.

We must also not allow anyone to distract us from the nature of yesterday's gathering. Society will not tolerate this naivety anymore neither from Georgians nor from foreigners. Each participant of yesterday's gathering knew very well that at 4 pm, on October 4th, they were going to overthrow the government. The time, place, plan, and the goal were precisely set.

Several thousand people who gathered yesterday knew very well where they were going and what they were doing. These are those several thousand people angry about their lives and their country who, in March 2022, from the same place, demanded Georgia's involvement in the war in Ukraine; those who, in June 2022, from the same place, called for the Government to transfer power to foreign NGOs; those who in March 2023, from the same place, threw a Molotov cocktail for the first time; those who lost elections in October 2024, and instead of accepting the defeat, launched another unsuccessful attempt to destabilise the country.

These are a few thousand people flying the flag for someone else, and who would trade our country's independence for the obedience to someone else. It is symbolic that yesterday, these several thousand rioters, flying the flag for someone else, were defeated right on the Freedom Square. After yesterday's failed coup attempt, we should not lose sight of the foreign propaganda support that yesterday's attempt to overthrow the Government mustered.

Throughout the day, a constant stream of disinformation flowed from Georgia to international media platforms, while inciting calls were heard from abroad by people who, no one doubts, were rubbing their hands with glee in anticipation of bloodshed. We saw the culmination of this external support during the storming of the Georgian President's residence, when coordinated statements by people, already well-known to our society, appeared, claiming to be external supporters of Maidanization. Pay attention to the fact that neither during the preparation of the crime, nor during its course, nor after, not a single foreigner, not a single Brussels bureaucrat, nor an official from an individual country, not even distanced oneself from violence and crime, let alone condemned it.

We heard only the slogans supporting the crime and, also, general, empty phrases about democracy and freedom, which seemed even more cynical against the backdrop of the massive crime that the entire world was watching live. Moreover, a few days ago, we heard a statement from the European Commission spokesperson expressing solidarity with the anti-government rally announced for October 4.

We have repeatedly pointed out the harmful nature of this statement. However, no one has distanced oneself from it. Of course, the society will not forget this open support, and expects an explanation. Their deafening silence on the failed violent overthrow by the extremists embraced by foreign funders and patrons, clearly demonstrates how much real value they place on democracy, human rights, and peaceful development of the Georgian people. The failed coup d'état of October 4 should serve as a final warning to everyone, both inside and outside the country.

There are already calls made to pretend that yesterday's attempt to overthrow the Government was only a temporary setback, and that there is a need to change the tactic, continue provocations and they will definitely achieve their goal. It is unimaginable to chronicle greater cynicism, contempt, and outright betrayal of the homeland than these people are doing. However, the lesson of October 4 has been learned. Within the framework of the Constitution and the law, the Georgian Government will do everything possible to ensure that the country is protected, the people have peace, and Georgia and our children have a future. With calmness, strength, dignity, loyalty, and love, good has triumphed over evil”, Papuashvili said.