Georgian Prime Minister says restoring public debate crucial for healthy democracy

Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze on Thursday emphasised the need to restore public debate as an essential pillar of democracy, warning that the suppression of differing opinions undermines citizens’ ability to make informed choices.

In a social media message, Kobakhidze noted that debate, or discussion about the truth, was one of the fundamental pillars of democracy.

“Debate allows society to hear and analyse the views of people with differing opinions and make choices in favour of the perspective they find most reasonable. It is on this foundation that truly democratic states and the principle of people’s governance are built”, he said.

Kobakhidze added that throughout history, debates had taken many forms, from public ‘discussion forums’ to televised debates, but their goal had always been the same - society’s majority should decide which position best aligns with its values, views, and needs.

“As a distinctive feature of European civilization, the culture of debate has historically been highly developed on the European continent. Debates have been conducted in all areas of public life - politics, business, environment, culture, sports, and more - allowing the population to remain fully informed and make sound decisions”, the PM noted.

He further lamented that since 2008, the situation in Europe had gradually deteriorated, largely due to the growing influence of the so-called deep state or informal oligarchic governance.

“As European countries’ sovereignty weakened and democratic standards declined, informal rulers created artificial problems, such as LGBT and gender identity issues, green politics, and others, offering the public pre-packaged solutions. This deprived people of real choice, shifted attention from genuine issues to manufactured controversies, and ultimately undermined healthy debate, a crucial pillar of democracy”, Kobakhidze continued.

He highlighted that instead of using weapons, these informal rulers had relied on soft methods - ideological and informational pressure on public consciousness - which directly contradicted open debate, public critique, and analysis.

“Significant time, energy, and resources have been spent on maintaining this problem. Particularly since 2020, major European media outlets have shut down popular, high-rating debate programs, eliminating opportunities for discussion and the exchange of differing opinions”, the PM said.

“This suppression of debate has contributed to the erosion of European democracy, as informal oligarchs successfully silenced differing voices and closed key platforms for public discourse. Unfortunately, this strategy partially affected Georgia as well, interrupting the long-standing culture of political, economic, and social debate”, he added.

Kobakhidze further emphasised that opposition leader Nika Gvaramia became a central figure in executing this agenda.

“When his patrons realised that public debate could easily reveal the truth from falsehoods, Gvaramia was inserted into the media to radicalise the discourse. He established a media environment dominated by lies, insults, defamation, and hysteria, creating such a toxic climate that normal, healthy individuals avoid participating in debates, which now often end in offense. This situation has divided society and deprived it of the democratic right to hear differing positions and make informed choices”, he said.

“Today, we see, on one hand, a fully marginalised partisan faction with no connection to journalism, and on the other, media forced to respond constantly to waves of disinformation”, Kobakhidze stated.

The Prime Minister stressed that as the goals, agents, and methods of this artificially created, polarised environment were clear, the Georgian Government was obliged to correct this unhealthy situation.

“We must restore to the Georgian people the democratic right to participate in debates and prevent informal powers and their local agents from imposing their agenda”, he noted.

“To ensure that Georgians can make informed choices in the future, they must have the opportunity to hear the positions of all political groups aspiring to power. We must restore public debate in social life, which is vital for the proper functioning of democracy”, Kobakhidze concluded.