Georgian opposition leader warns of threat to independence on key referendum anniversary

Opposition leader Mamuka Khazaradze on Monday accused the ruling Georgian Dream party of “attempting to rewrite Georgia’s history,” warning that the country’s “hard-won independence” was “once again under threat.”

Marking the 34th anniversary of Georgia’s 1991 independence referendum, the leader of Lelo – Strong Georgia claimed that an “anti-state commission” – in reference to the ruling party’s temporary parliamentary commission investigating alleged crimes under the previous, United National Movement government, including alleged flaws during the Russia-Georgia 2008 war – was “working in Moscow’s interests.”

“The freedom won with blood is still in danger today,” Khazaradze wrote on Facebook, denouncing what he described as an “illegitimate body controlled by Russian proxies.”

He also honored those who had sacrificed their lives for Georgia’s sovereignty, including the servicemembers who fought in the 2008 war against Russia. Calling for national unity, he urged a “complete boycott” of what he termed the “Russian Commission of the Russian Dream.”

His comments come amid heightened political tensions, with critics of the ruling Georgian Dream party accusing it of shifting the country closer to Moscow.