Georgian Dream’s Kaladze says EU Ambassador would be ‘kicked out’ of ‘developed country’

The ruling Georgian Dream party has accused EU Ambassador Paweł Herczyński of ‘interfering’ in Georgia’s internal affairs by criticising its use of images of war-torn Ukraine in its campaign ads.

On Sunday, Tbilisi Mayor and Secretary general of the ruling party, Kakha Kaladze told journalists that in a ‘developed country’, the ambassador would be ‘immediately kicked in the ass out of the country’ for his criticism of the banners.

On Friday, Herczyński criticised Georgian Dream’s use of images of buildings destroyed by Russia in Ukraine in their election banners, calling them ‘outrageous, shameful, and terrifying’.

Georgian Dream put up the banners in late September. They depict destroyed buildings and infrastructure in Ukraine alongside the electoral numbers of opposition groups and the caption ‘no to war’, next to pictures of intact Georgian buildings marked with the ruling party’s own electoral number, 41, and the caption ‘choose peace’.

[Read more: Georgian Dream launches campaign ads using images of war-torn Ukraine]

On Monday, Parliamentary Speaker Shalva Papuashvili accused Herczyński of ‘interfering’ in the elections and of bias for not criticising banners put up by the opposition United National Movement (UNM). Papuashvili did not clarify which banners he was referring to.

In response, Herczyński told journalists on Monday that his job was to present the position of the European Union, adding that it was a country’s right to expel foreign diplomats if they wished.

‘The Russian propaganda of the Georgian Dream’

Georgian Dream has also released campaign videos mirroring the contents of the banners to be aired on Georgian TV channels.

On Sunday, three opposition-aligned channels — Mtavari Arkhi, Pirveli, and Formula — issued a joint statement condemning the ads, calling them ‘immoral’ and vowing not to air them, despite them running the risk of being fined for refusing to air the ads.

‘Although the endless fines imposed by the authorities are a heavy burden for critical channels, we still do not intend, even indirectly, to support the Russian propaganda of the Georgian Dream and the mockery of the Ukrainian people’, the statement read.

‘We fully share the EU ambassador’s assessment that this is an “outrageous, disgraceful and appalling” campaign and therefore refuse to broadcast these videos’.

A number of Georgian civil society and media rights organisations expressed support for their decision not to air the ads, and called on Georgia’s National Communications Commission not to become a ‘propaganda tool’ for Georgian Dream by enforcing fines on the TV stations.

In his speech on Monday, Papuashvili criticised the channels’ decision not to air the ads, and attributed it to Herczyński’s statements.

Parliamentary elections in Georgia are scheduled for 26 October.

Read in Azerbaijani on Meydan TV.