Georgian Parliament Speaker accuses EU of “applauding” violence last November

Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Friday commented on last year’s November events, saying that over 100 police officers were injured, police equipment was set on fire, while Brussels “was watching and applauding this”.

In his remarks, Papuashvili noted that neither the EU Ambassador, nor other outspoken ambassadors, nor the European Commission, the European Parliament, or “any loudly speaking European” condemned the violence “with even a single word”.

The Speaker further highlighted that what the public saw last year was “encouraged and approved directly from Brussels’ bureaucracy”.

“What we witnessed last year was externally provoked and supported violence against state institutions - violence against the country. Let me remind you: in November last year, the chairs of foreign affairs committees from seven countries visited Georgia, and among them, a representative of the Swedish Government openly called on people to take to the streets, and within days the radical opposition followed that call. They came out and set the Parliament [building] on fire. You remember - several rooms were burned. Every exterior window of the building was smashed. There were attempts to burn the building; pyrotechnics were used. Over 100 police officers were injured. Police equipment was being set ablaze. Brussels was watching all of this and applauding. They applauded violence”, he said.

“To this day, neither the EU Ambassador, nor any other frequently vocal ambassador, nor the European Commission, the European Parliament, or any loudly speaking European has condemned the violence we saw last year from their funded NGOs and supported politicians during the attempt to set the Parliament building on fire”, Papuashvili continued.

He further recalled that after protesters lit a fire at the entrance of a European Parliament office in Sofia, Bulgaria, the EU reacted strongly.

“There was an uproar across the European Union - how could this happen? Meanwhile, here, people funded by them were burning the Parliament building, and not only did they fail to condemn it, they increased funding afterward”, the Speaker pointed out.

“The violence we saw last year was directly encouraged, approved, and applauded by Brussels’ bureaucracy, and it brought further violence. That violence required an appropriate response. You remember that Molotov cocktails were discovered in party offices - including the ‘Droa’ office. Recall Ms. Khoshtaria’s public statements saying that she was buying flares and would buy them again, and that she was organising all of this. You also remember how EU funds were being spent to pay off fines”, Papuashvili concluded.