Georgia’s outgoing President Salome Zurabishvili has agreed to leave the presidential residence, the Orbeliani Palace in Tbilisi, during an opposition rally near the palace, according to the Interpressnews news agency.
Until now, she had refused to leave the residence and step down, claiming the government is illegitimate. The newly elected President, Mikhail Saakashvili, will take office on December 29.
Zurabishvili addressed the demonstrators gathered in front of the presidential palace:
“I will come here and be with you. I will bring legitimacy, I will bring the flag, and I will bring what you trust in. We must return the Orbeliani Palace. It belongs to them, they took it, and they want to stay here forever.”
She added:
“Six years ago, I took an oath to the constitution, but even more so to the country and to you. Therefore, I am here today, and this loyalty will not change, whether I am in the palace or outside.”
After Saakashvili took the oath in the Georgian parliament and officially assumed the presidency, Zurabishvili left the residence and joined the demonstrators, receiving applause, as reported by the Ambebi.ge news portal. She told the gathering that she would head to the Svetitskhoveli Cathedral and invited everyone to join her. To one of the citizens, she said:
“If you need protection, I will be there.”
Zurabishvili supports the demonstrators, who are protesting the victory of the ruling party, Georgian Dream, in the parliamentary elections and Saakashvili’s election as president. She has warned of a “regime change” if the new authorities fail to hold new parliamentary elections.
As the president was elected for the first time this year through a commission of 150 lawmakers and an equal number of regional delegates, the politician described the process as a “travesty” and called for a re-election. Saakashvili was the sole candidate in the election, nominated by Georgian Dream.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili had previously warned that Zurabishvili must leave the residence or risk being forcibly removed and arrested.