New Georgian president sworn in as pro-EU predecessor says he’s taking his ‘legitimacy’ with her

Of Sana Noor HaqCNN

Mikheil Kavelashvili was inaugurated as Georgia’s president on Sunday (local time), after a tumultuous election period marked by fresh divisions between the former Soviet state’s pro-Russian and pro-EU factions.

Kavelashvili, 53 – a former lawmaker for the right-wing Georgian Dream party and former English Premier League soccer star – was sworn in at the country’s parliament in Tbilisi. A harsh critic of the West, he was the only candidate in the race after opposition parties boycotted the parliamentary process to elect the president.

Kavelashvili pledged to be “everybody’s president, whether they like me or not.” He urged Georgians to unite around “common values, principles of mutual respect and the future we should build together.”

“The Georgian people have always understood that peace is the main prerequisite for survival and development,” he said on Sunday.

In recent weeks, Kavelashvili’s succession to the largely ceremonial role has drawn condemnation from key opposition groups and fierce protests by citizens who oppose the government’s decision to postpone its bid to join the European Union.

Incumbent President Salome Zourabichvili, a pro-Western opponent of the ruling party, maintained a tough line in her speech to supporters outside the presidential palace on Sunday.

“I’ll get out of here and be with you,” she said. “I take my legitimacy with me, I take the flag with me, I take your trust with me,” she added.

Protesters waved red cards in reference to Kavelashvili’s football career. “Because today our president is a footballer, we show him a red card. The next step will be to remove him from the field. Surely the Georgian people will do that, because it was a circus they held in the parliament today. protester Sofia Shamanidi told The Associated Press.

CNN previously reported on police and masked “special forces” unleashing a brutal crackdown on dozens of demonstrators – some of whom were left hospitalised. CNN asked the country’s Ministry of Internal Affairs for comment on the alleged brutality of the masked forces, but did not receive a response.

Georgia’s Interior Ministry said more than 150 officers were injured during the protests.

Critics expressed concern about Kavelashvili’s competence for the role, citing his experience in sports rather than politics. In 2016, he entered the political scene after being disqualified from seeking the leadership of the Georgian Football Federation for not having a higher education.

The Georgian dream received almost 54% of the votes. For the first time, the president was elected in parliament by the direct vote of a 300-member electoral college made up of parliamentarians and representatives of local public administration.

Since the four main opposition groups had boycotted parliament since the disputed October election, Kavelashvili was the guaranteed winner. Local and international election monitors said the vote was marred by irregularities, and Western countries called for an investigation.

At the time, Zourabichvili said the trial was “illegitimate” and alleged “a Russian special operation – a new form of hybrid warfare waged against our people and our country.”

Many Georgians feel deep-seated resentment toward Russia, which invaded Georgia in 2008 and occupies about 20 percent of its internationally recognized territory — roughly the same proportion it occupies in Ukraine. Despite recent Russian aggression against Georgia, Georgian Dream has long been accused of harboring pro-Russian sympathies, and Ivanishvili made his fortune in the Soviet Union.

– CNN