Georgien seit 2005 - Georgia since 2005 >> Saakashvili’s State of Nation Address 2010 - 26.02.2010, Civil Georgia President Saakashvili delivered annual state of the nation address in Parliament, followed by remarks of ruling party MPs and rebuttal speeches by parliamentary minority lawmakers. Key points of President Saakashvili’s address:
After a short break following the President’s 90-minute long address, lawmakers from the parliamentary minority and majority groups took the floor: MP Petre Mamradze (who is not a member of a formal parliamentary minority group) of ex-PM Zurab Nogaideli’s Movement for Fair Georgia said he was not in the list of speakers, although he had requested. Parliamentary Chairman, Davit Bakradze, told him that his request was submitted too late and it was not possible to arrange his inclusion in the list of speakers. After that MP Mamradze walked out of the chamber. In her speech MP Magda Anikashvili of Christian-Democratic Movement (a leading party in the parliamentary minority group) mainly spoke on social issues, focusing on socially vulnerable people and need for setting clear criteria for identifying such people, so that to rule out situation wherein some might be excluded from the list of those eligible for state assistance. She proposed free healthcare for children under 7 years old. She said “price limits” should be established on major medicines. MP Guram Chakhvadze of National-Democratic Movement (member of parliamentary minority) told the President that only a narrow circle of people associated with the government benefit from the authorities’ economic policies. He also called on the President “to stand above your [ruling] party interest” and be a guarantor of holding free and fair elections. MP Dimitri Lortkipanidze, an individual member of parliamentary minority, raised issue of high-profile murder cases in which officials were alleged to be either involved or trying to cover them up. MP Jondi Bagaturia, leader of Georgian Troupe also focused on social issues and among other things called on the President to increase minimal monthly pensions to GEL 150; write-off debt accumulated as result unpaid communal tariffs; he also called on the President to say no to “zero tolerance”, which he said led to prison overcrowding. MP Giorgi Tsagareishvili listed names of those opposition activists and supporters who were attacked and beaten at the time when street protest rallies were ongoing in Tbilisi. “Who were those people committing those crimes? I will hand this list to you and look through this list of these people who were attacked,” MP Tsagareishvili said. He also demanded from the President to make his special fund transparent. In his speech MP Pavle Kublashvili of the ruling party
called on the opposition politicians not to focus only on negative and
“also to note the positive deeds that is being done in the country.” He
said it would an expression of high political culture. MP Giorgi Akhvlediani of Christian-Democratic Movement welcomed the initiative to provide tax amnesty to television stations in the provinces. He, however, told the President that he had failed “to establish the Georgian statehood.” He said that because of wrong economic policies number of socially vulnerable people had increased. He also criticized the President for not introducing direct mayoral elections in other major cities of Georgia; MP Giorgi Gabashvili of the ruling party said the opposition lawmakers’ speeches “lacked arguments” and were “totally inappropriate.” “Debates should be more fact-based,” he said. Apparently alluding to Nogaideli’s party he said that there still were “forces” in Georgia, which “do not want the country’s independent development course.” MP Giorgi Targamadze, leader of Christian-Democratic Movement and of parliamentary minority said that President Saakashvili created system in which he ruled the country unilaterally. He said on foreign policy front there are series of failures and cited closure of OSCE and UN missions. He also said planned reopening of Zemo Larsi-Kazbegi border crossing point with Russia was a source of concern. “There is crisis of values in the opposition,” he said. “But there is even bigger crisis within the authorities, which have no values at all,” he said and added that Nogaideli served for years as PM in the Saakashvili’s administration. He also told Saakashvili: “Distance from the ruling party and be the President of each citizen of Georgia.” He offered to decrease defense spending at a level of GDP’s 3%. “It will help to save GEL 170 million, which will be enough for business stimulus projects,” he said. He also told the President: “You have turned your back on democracy.” In his closing remarks President Saakashvili said:
Saakashvili Delivers State of Nation Address 2009 - 12.02.2009, Civil Georgia Below are key points of President Saakashvili’s fifth state of the nation address and follow-up debates in the parliament chamber packed with lawmakers, government members and invited foreign diplomats.
After the address, which lasted slightly over an hour, a break has been announced, which was then followed by a response from the parliamentary majority leader, MP Petre Tsiskarishvili to the President's speech and by a rebuttal speech by parliamentary minority leader, MP Giorgi Targamadze. Chairmen of parliamentary factions are also eligible to make comments. Then the President will respond to the lawmakers’ comments. Chairman of parliamentary faction Christian-Democrats (part of the parliamentary minority group), MP Giorgi Akhvlediani, in his comments focused on economy and asked the President how the government was planning to tackle unemployment; whether he deemed necessary or not to re-establish anti-monopoly service; what concrete measures were planned for assisting agriculture and “to protect Georgian farmers;” why a memorandum with “occupant country” – reference to Russia’s electricity trade Inter RAO – on Enguri Hydro Power Plant was not public; MP Akhvlediani also asked about the democracy and told the President that “democratic values had been devalued under your presidency;” he also asked why the events of November 7, 2007, were not investigated and those responsible for excessive use of force against protesters not punished; in his comments MP Akhvlediani also raised Girgvliani case and Robakidze case. MP Gia Tortladze, the chairman of the parliamentary faction Strong Georgia (part of the parliamentary minority group), told the President: “restoration of justice” is essential; political pressure should be stopped on judges; condition of inmates remains hard – although some progress had been achieved in recent years; private property rights are violated; the current election code should be reformed in line with the international standards; problems of those who have become displaced persons after the August war are being addressed, but those IDPs from the Abkhaz conflict in early 90s are “forgotten;” business should “be free of political pressure;” “the media is complaining about pressure – let’s create a press house” and grant them a building for that purpose; why criminal charges are not brought against separatists leaders of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, Sergey Bagapsh and Eduard Kokoity; we offer to create national analytical center to provide recommendations on information war against Russia. MP Giorgi Gabashvili of parliamentary faction United National Movement (part of the ruling majority) said: we have listened from the President concrete proposals what is planned to do to tackle outstanding problems; health insurance proposal is “a revolutionary breakthrough” in this system; we have listened an elaborated plan how to tackle serious challenges we are facing and we will tackle these problems through liberal economic principles; no memorandum has been signed with “the occupant country,” a memorandum has been signed with a company to minimize threats to the energy sector; the President’s speech contained a clear message to the political parties by saying that the only way to cooperate with opponents is a dialogue. MP Giorgi Targamadze, the leader of parliamentary minority, said in his rebuttal speech: the August war showed that there is no political system in the country, which would have helped to evade internal and foreign threats; the permanent revolutionary stance on the one hand and lack of responsible governance on the other hand is a reason behind that trend; the Christian-Democrats are strongly against of revolutions so we are calling on you [the President] to engage in a constructive dialogue with the opposition; we offer to set up a constitutional commission which will work on change of the current system of governance and replace the current “unilateral rule” by the President into a genuine checks-and-balances system; years ago I was telling then President Shevardnadze to make a choice in favor of genuine democracy, but he failed and ended up with the Rose Revolution [in 1999-2003 he was a lawmaker from the party of the ex-leader of Adjara Autonomous Republic Aslan Abashidze]; although there are lot’s of political TV talk shows, a problem remains lack of independence of editorial policy on the nation-wide television stations; the August war is only a small part of the 200-year-old war with Russia and this war is not yet over. MP Petre Tsiskarishvili, leader of the parliamentary majority, said: Russia wants to have in Tbilisi a puppet government, similar to the one it has in Tskhinvali and Sokhumi; through stability and in case of our western partners “principled approach” towards Russia, “our enemy” will be forced to de-occupy our territories; democratic reforms are one of the major point, which we need not for showing it to the international community, but we need it for our country; when MP Giorgi Targamadze says that he had been telling Shevardnadze to make a choice in favor of democracy, he’d better go to Adjara and see the difference between today’s Adjara and Adjara years ago [a reference to Targamadze’s cooperation with ex-Adjarian leader in the past]; Mr. President, our [ruling] party’s position is that the precedent of last year [when early presidential and parliamentary elections were held] should not become a rule – calling early elections after each and every difficulty makes the country more unstable. After the lawmakers’ comments, President Saakashvili requested a short break in order “to consult with the government members” before he would respond. He also said that it was also done in order to demonstrate that “decision are not taken unilaterally” by him. Key points of President Saakashvili response to the parliamentary minority lawmakers’ rebuttal speeches:
Saakashvili Delivers State of Nation Address 2008 - 16.09.2008, Civil Georgia In his annual state of the nation address, President Saakashvili announced, what he called, “the launch of a new wave of democratic reforms.” “The goal of these reforms is to have stronger parliament and more effective means for control and oversight between the branches of government; to strengthen the inviolability of private property; to make media more free and unbiased; and to make the judiciary more just and independent,” Saakashvili said. The address was not pre-planned. President Saakashvili said he had planned to deliver his annual address on September 15 when he was due to meet 26 ambassadors from the NATO North Atlantic Council in Tbilisi. The address took place late in the evening, shortly after President Saakashvili held a joint news conference with visiting NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer. The latter reiterated in earlier remarks that the crisis in Georgia should no way hinder democratic reforms. At a press conference, Saakashvili told foreign journalists to follow him to Parliament to listen to his new democratic reform proposals. Parliament In respect of Parliament, Saakashvili said in his state of the nation address that proposals would involve constitutional amendments according to which any newly elected parliament would have the right to pass a confidence vote in the government. On May 20, just one day before the parliamentary elections, Saakashvili pledged measures to increase Parliament’s powers and he vowed “to re-submit the cabinet to a confidence vote in the new parliament” – something that has not happened so far. In his state of the nation address, Saakashvili also pledged “to simplify procedures” to allow Parliament to call for a vote of no confidence, as well as “to make it more difficult for the president to dissolve Parliament.” “We will work out the details of how to do that,” he added. He also reiterated a commitment “to speed up” the process of giving the parliamentary minority additional seats in the Group of Confidence – a special parliamentary group charged with monitoring defense spending, including that related to top secret projects. Parliament has already endorsed such proposal with its first and second hearings. Party Funding In his address President Saakashvili reiterated his commitment to revise the authorities’ controversial decision to suspend funding for those parties, which have refused to enter into the new Parliament in protest of, what they called, rigged May 21 parliamentary elections. He voiced this commitment for the first time on August 29. Saakashvili in addition pledged to increase funding for the parties and also to set up a special fund, “which will finance political research for the opposition parties and non-governmental organizations.” Private Property The president reiterated that he was ready to propose a constitutional amendment “that would allow the seizure of private property only with a court decision.” The government announced about launch of work on an initiative similar to this in December, 2007. In March, 2008, Public Defender Sozar Subari submitted to Parliament for consideration a draft law envisaging setting up an independent commission to probe into private property disputes between the state and owners. The ruling party, however, gave cold-shoulder to the proposal. Broadcast Media In his address Saakashvili acknowledged for the first time that the lack of media freedom “remains a challenge for our democracy.” “Regarding public TV, we should secure institutionalization of debates,” he said. “And we should secure more openness of the public TV for every – even the smallest – groups. There should be frequent debates. It may be twice a week or as you decide – it is up to you to decide [referring to lawmakers].” Currently, there is no political talk-show on any national TV station. The Georgian Public Broadcaster’s bi-weekly program Comment of the Day was suspended under the pretext of summer holidays, originally till September, but the program has yet to resume. Saakashvili said he was focusing on the public TV because he had no intention “to stick his nose into in private TV stations’ business.” Two national private television stations – Imedi and Rustavi 2 TV – are both regarded as being under the control of the authorities. Judiciary President Saakashvili said that “the backbone and guarantor of our democracy” was the judicial system. After “cleaning the judiciary of corruption,” Saakashvili said Georgia now “needs a more just, more independent and stronger judiciary.” “That’s why we have to launch a new wave of judicial reform aimed at building a more independent and more just judicial system,” he said. Saakashvili proposed that judges be appointed for life. “This is an additional guarantee that judges will feel more protected, hence they will be more independent,” he said. Another reform, he continued, would be the appointment of opposition figures to the Supreme Council of Justice - the body overseeing the judicial system. The proposal has already been endorsed by the Parliament this June. He said that the introduction of a jury system was also on the cards. Its introduction has been in the pipeline for a long time with a start date sometime next year, according to an initial plan. At the first stage, juries will only be used in trials dealing with homicide and other grave crimes. ‘Ready to Cooperate with Opposition as Never Before’ President Saakashvili said in his address that unlike Russia – where the authorities, according to him, had further strengthened their grip on the media and business – Georgia’s response to post-war reconstruction would be “more democracy and freedom.” “Many countries might have said that less democracy and less transparency and more control by a small group of people was needed against the background of war,” Saakashvili said. “Georgia, which is a beacon of democracy in this region, however, says that our response to Russia’s aggression will be more democracy, more freedom and more progress.” He said that the authorities recently had undertaken a number of “important steps” to help increase the role and powers of the opposition in Parliament. “I welcome the fact that we have managed to find a common language with the opposition on such key issues as Georgia’s unity,” Saakashvili said. He again reiterated that he was ready to grant some executive powers to the Anti-Crisis Council – a body, which he has proposed for overseeing the distribution of humanitarian aid and foreign aid funds. Only some opposition parties, mainly those from the parliamentary minority, have agreed to cooperate with the authorities in the frames of the Anti-Crisis Council. Most of the opposition parties, however, rejected the proposal claiming that it was part of the authorities’ propaganda. Saakashvili described those opposition parities as “a small part of the opposition… which has preferred to get Georgia back into the situation of permanent quarrels and political confrontation.” “Do not forget that today Georgia as never before needs our unity and our cooperation,” he told those parties. “I am ready for cooperation with you as never before.” He, however, did not name specific issues on which he was offering cooperation. He then reiterated earlier statement about an official readiness to answer all questions about what had led to the war. “Of course there are questions; I welcome them,” Saakashvili said. “I want the process to be fully transparent; I have called for an international inquiry and I have called for parliamentary debates [on the matter]; I request you to set up a group of rapporteurs and hold political debates about the events of recent weeks; let the opposition be in the majority in this group; all the ministries and officials – I myself am ready to meet this group – are ready to answer all questions.” The president focused mostly on an intra-parliamentary formatted
inquiry, which is unacceptable to most opposition parties, especially
those who are boycotting Parliament. Saakashvili Delivers State of Nation Address 2007 - 15.03.2007, Civil Georgia President Saakashvili unveiled
new plans for tax reforms and Tbilisi’s intention to launch official
talks with the Tbilisi-loyal self-imposed leaders of South Ossetia
during his third state of the nation address to the Parliament on March
15. Saakashvili unveiled plans to carry out tax reforms involving a reduction of the number of taxes and the introduction of, as he put it, an independent tax arbitration system. He said that the government is ready to reduce profit tax from the current 20% to 15% starting from 2008. The plan also envisages combining the 12% income tax and 20% social tax. “I have already instructed the government to start working on combining the income tax and social tax – both of them now add up to 32% - and to reduce this combined tax to 25%,” Saakashvili said. He said the new initiative will be a continuation of a trend launched by his administration two years ago, when new reduced taxes were enforced starting from 2005. Saakashvili said in the past two years the government reduced taxes by a total of 40%, and decreased customs dues. “But, because of the eradication of corruption and improvement of administration, tax and customs revenues have increased in the country,” the President says. He said that tax reform will also envisage the introduction of a new
independent body with the involvement of foreign arbiters for carrying
out impartial adjudication of tax disputes between the state and
taxpayers. Secessionist Conflicts Tbilisi should launch official relations and talks with the alternative authorities of breakaway South Ossetia, President Saakashvili said for the first time since Tbilisi-loyal authorities led by ex-defense minister of breakaway South Ossetia Dimitri Sanakoev were installed in the Georgian village of Kurta in the conflict zone last November. He said that 2006 was “very important year” for the residents of South Ossetia because the “free part” of this population demonstrated its “trust towards local Ossetian leaders” during the elections last November. “Dimitri Sanakoev's movement has been set up. Sanakoev, [Prime
Minister of Kurta-based authorities Uruzmag] Karkusov and others are
individuals who were in the forefront of local separatism in its fight
against the central authorities. But today, as their platform envisages
peaceful co-existence within a united Georgia, naturally with full
guarantees to protect ethnic Ossetians’ interests, they have managed to
find a common language with the local ethnic Georgians, which I think
is a unique case in the history of the conflicts; I think we should not
lose this chance,” Saakashvili said. The announcement is expected to trigger angry reactions from Tskhinvali and Moscow. Saakashvili also said that Tbilisi is ready to talk “with all parties involved in this conflict.” “But first of all we are talking with our citizens and not to a certain group that has monopolized the right to talk on behalf of every citizen of the region,” Saakashvili added. In his speech Saakashvili also denounced the terms “Georgian-Abkhazian conflict” and “Georgian-Ossetian conflict” as phrases “created by silly and unaware people.” “What does the Georgian-Ossetian conflict mean? Who represents the Ossetian side? Does Mr. [Yuri] Morozov [Russian citizen who serves as prime minister of breakaway South Ossetia] represent the Ossetian side? Or does Mr. [Anatoly] Barankevych [also Russian citizen who was defense minister of breakaway South Ossetia] represent the Ossetian side? Or does Dimitri Sanakoev [Tbilisi-loyal self-imposed leader of South Ossetia] represent the Ossetian side? Do the Georgian and Ossetian sides exist at all? Several of the most famous kings of Georgia were ethnic Ossetians. The Georgian-Ossetian conflict does not exist at all. This is one more fabrication by imperial ideologists,” Saakashvili said. He also said that same refers to the Abkhaz case, because Malkhaz
Akishbaia, head of the Tbilisi-loyal Abkhaz government-in-exile, is an
ethnic Abkhazian. He also criticized the current Russian-led peacekeeping and negotiating arrangements for the conflicts as “discredited and ineffective” and called for “a smooth transformation into more flexible and effective formats.” “Of course, we seek more active involvement from the European institutions and the United States in it [peace process]… Everybody understands that its [current peacekeeping and negotiating format’s] preservation in its current form is practically impossible,” Saakashvili said. Saakashvili reiterated that Tbilisi is ready to grant both Abkhazia and South Ossetia “broad autonomy in compliance with European standards.” He also said that the Georgian side should demonstrate “enough patience and flexibility” to avoid provocations and tensions. Saakashvili said that 2006 marked “an important stage” in the process of restoring Georgia’s territorial integrity by regaining control over upper Kodori Gorge in breakaway Abkhazia. “It [Tbilisi’s control over upper Kodori] frightens our enemies… Some people wanted this territory to become a safe haven for bandits; but instead it now has the legitimate Abkhaz government[-in-exile],” he added. Judiciary System Reform President Saakashvili said that the first stage of judiciary reforms, aiming for the eradication of corruption in the system, has been successfully completed. He said that as a result of this reform many corrupt judges have been sacked from their positions. Saakashvili said the next stage of the reform, the creation of a
system where there will be no need for interference in the judiciary’s
functioning, is now being launched. He said that the judiciary’s independence will be further increased after the introduction of a court jury system next year. “Society itself will assume civil responsibility and we should believe that it will cope with this task,” Saakashvili stated. A February 2007 public opinion survey
funded by USAID and commissioned by the International Republican
Institute (IRI) showed that public confidence in the courts was 23%.
The courts rated fourteenth in the list of sixteen most-trusted
institutions, with the Orthodox Church leading the list, followed
by the army, media and the police. Saakashvili said that the crime rate has been reduced in the country, because last year “we announced zero tolerance to crime.” He said that the fight against criminal bosses and the criminal mentality has led to an increase of the number of inmates in Georgia’s prisons, adding that the government should improve conditions in the penitentiary system. “Instead of a country with a criminal mentality, we now live in new Georgia where the criminal world has been destroyed,” Saakashvili said. He said that the fight against drug dealers will now become a major focus. Saakashvili said he plans to propose a draft law envisaging the confiscation of property from drug dealers. Economic/Trade Growth Saakashvili said that despite Russia’s economic embargo on Georgia, there was an “impressive 10% economic growth” in 2006. “Our traditional market [Russia] has been totally closed down for us; but regardless of this fact Georgia’s trade turnover in 2006 has reached USD 5 billion, which is 40% more than in 2005,” Saakashvili said. He said that Georgia’s exports also increased by 15% in 2006 as a result of the diversification of Georgia’s foreign trade. Georgia’s trade turnover, according to Saakashvili, with Turkey and the EU increased by 40% and 45%, respectively, and trade has doubled with Ukraine and Kazakhstan. “We plan to sign a free trade agreement with Turkey, which will give even more opportunities to attract more investments and eradicate trade barriers,” Saakashvili said. He also said that 2006 was a year of “big investments,” with the attraction of USD 1.12 billion in foreign direct investments. Saakashvili said that the United States has become the top investor in Georgia’s economy, followed by EU-member countries. He said that 2006 was a year of the “creation of new jobs.” A total
of 40 000 new companies were set up last year, according to the
President. President Saakashvili said that the government is now “intensively
working” on the creation of free economic zones on its Black Sea coast.
The President said that moving towards Europe is Georgia’s major foreign policy course. “Georgia is returning to its European family. We are not simply Europeans, we are ancient Europeans… Europe is our major direction,” Saakashvili said. “Europe first of all – this is the major slogan of our foreign policy,” he added. Saakashvili said that Georgia will follow its action plan with the EU in as outlined in the European Neighborhood Policy “and we want to have full coordination [with the EU] in security, politics and economics.” He also reiterated Georgia’s ambition to join NATO and hailed a memorandum signed by the leading political groups, including those of some opposition parties, calling for Georgia’s NATO-membership. Army Saakashvili said that today Georgia is ready for “any kind of challenge,” as it has much stronger army than the country had 4-5 years ago. “I want everyone to realize difference between the current situation [in the armed forces] and the one that existed 4-5 years ago. Four years ago we only had slingshots [a reference to remarks by Georgia’s ex-defense minister Davit Tevzadze, who said in 2002 after Russia’s air attack on Pankisi Gorge that he has nothing to shoot except slingshots], and now we have air defense systems. At that time we had an undressed, unarmed and unmotivated army, today we have well-trained and well-equipped armed forces,” Saakashvili said. He said that the Ministry of Defense has recently launched an important program for recruiting highly-qualified professionals in the Georgian army. “We need 1 000 university graduate officers in the army. We will
provide them with social guarantees to create an elite corps of
officers in the Georgian army,” Saakashvili said. Saakashvili Delivers State of Nation Address 2006 - 14.02.2006, Civil Georgia In his second annual state of
the nation address to the Parliament on February 14, President
Saakashvili said that Georgia has become a country with rapidly growing
economy, which has the chance to join NATO by 2008. Economic Growth “Today we are still a very poor state from the economic point of view, but we are on the path which will help us overcome problems… GDP is expected to reach USD 1670 per capita in 2006; in 2010 GDP will be USD 2400 per capita, this means that by 2009 Georgia will no longer be classified as a poor state,” President Saakashvili said. He said that GDP growth was about 9% in 2005. “This is despite the fact that oil prices increased last year,” Saakashvili added. The President said that the government privatized 816 facilities in 2005. “Total revenue from the privatization process last year amounted to GEL 522 million [USD 290 million],” he said. Saakashvili also said that the foreign trade turnout increased by 33% in 2005. “What is most important is that we increased export by 36% last year,” he added. But he said that despite a breakthrough in many areas, the customs system still remains an unsolved problem. “Hundreds of customs officers were arrested for bribery but it still did not help. We need a new, liberal customs code,” Saakashvili said. He said that the government plans liberalization of the customs system by cutting the number of customs dues from the current 16 to 3. “We will have customs dues rated zero, five and twelve percents… and within the next two years we should introduce all zero-rated customs dues… which will be a very serous step towards liberalizing the economy,” Saakashvili said. “This means that we will have GEL 80 million less income going to the budget, but you should know that this money will be a huge investment in the economy in a long-term perspective,” Saakashvili said. He said that the banking system also needs to be liberalized, to ease procedures for foreign banks to enter the Georgian market. He said that the labor code, as well as bankruptcy legislation, should also be liberalized. Infrastructure Development Saakashvili said that Georgia started a large-scale road construction projects and infrastructure rehabilitation in the country. “This year and next year we will construct more roads than were made in Soviet times. For the first time in the past 30 years a tunnel was opened [in the Adjara Autonomous Republic]… 83 bridges were reconstructed… in 2005 we launched the construction of a highway in western Georgia. In 2006-2008 we plan to finish a modern Tbilisi-Khashuri highway,” he said. Saakashvili described the planned rehabilitation of the road in the predominantly Armenian populated Samtskhe-Javakheti region as “a political act of historic importance.” He also said that reconstruction of cities is also underway. “We have ambition to create modern architecture, which will remain for dozens and hundreds of years,” he added. Energy Security While commenting on the recent energy crisis in Georgia, which erupted after two gas pipelines were blown-up in Russia’s North Ossetia on January 22, Saakashvili said that Georgia was prepared for this crisis, “because we knew that something like this could have happened.” He also slammed those opponents who criticized the Georgian leadership for making tough-worded statements and directly accusing Moscow of masterminding those explosions. “Some [opponents] asked why I voiced loud protest [towards Russia]. We already had a President [Eduard Shevardnadze] who kept his mouth shut like a dead man when pipes were blown up in previous times. And what good it has brought to Georgia? Of course I voiced protest and I will voice protest every time, because we have pride,” Saakashvili said. He also said that the government will actively work on securing alternative sources of energy supplies. “We were working over alternatives because we knew that our ‘friends’ were able to do this [blow up the gas pipelines]… We have reconstructed the pipeline with Azerbaijan, we have restored possible gas delivery routes from Iran; of course we are working on the Shah-Deniz project, we are working with European importers so that they can use our transit capabilities,” Saakashvili said. He said that for the first time since independence, Georgia now has a round-the-clock electricity supply. President Saakashvili outlined the vigorous fight against crime as one of the priorities of the authorities and said that “zero tolerance towards petty crime” will be the authorities’ policy. He hailed the Georgian law enforcement agencies, but said that they need “legislative support” to improve their fight against crime. Saakashvili slammed judges for, as he put it, showing too much mercy towards criminal suspects. “I am initiating a new draft law: zero tolerance towards even petty crime. I am initiating amendments to the criminal code, which envisage banning conditional sentences for house burglary, street robbery, possession of drugs and other petty offenses. 'No' to conditional sentence; everyone who commits these [crimes] should go to jail,” the President enthusiastically stated. “For this reason we are now constructing a new pre-trial detention center in Tbilisi, which will house 3000 persons,” he added. “Zero tolerance towards even petty offenses – this is our new, firm policy. I am saying this to let everyone understand this – the courts, the Parliament, the executive authorities, the police - everyone,” Saakashvili stated. Army/NATO Saakashvili said that Georgia will become a NATO membership candidate this year and will most likely join the alliance in 2008. “We are very close to NATO [membership]… I want to announce today that Georgia has a real chance to become a NATO member in 2008. This year we will become a NATO membership candidate country,” Saakashvili said. “This [NATO membership] means that Georgia’s borders will be NATO’s borders and these borders will be defended not by our tanks and planes, but it will be defended by several thousands western planes,” he added. He said that Georgia currently has “the smallest army in the region, but it is the best equipped army.” “We are a peaceful nation, but in this region, with plenty of threats, we need to have a strong army,” he added. Conflicts In his address President Saakashvili said nothing about his position on the ongoing debates about the withdrawal of the Russian peacekeeping forces from the South Ossetian conflict zone. Parliament is expected to adopt a resolution demanding the withdrawal of the Russian peacekeepers on February 15. But he said during his address that “there is no alternative to Georgia’s reunification.” “We have peace plans [to solve the conflicts],” he added. “We will be friends to the Abkhazians and Ossetians… We want our Ossetians back in Georgia. These people are an organic part of the Georgian mentality,” Saakashvili said. He also said that Russia’s attempt to push a policy of universality
of the Kosovo "example will be eradicated by Georgia and the
international community." Saakashvili spoke much about the education system and said that reforms in this system eradicated corruption and established equal opportunities. He said a large scale programs for schools throughout Georgia is underway envisaging reconstruction of old schools and construction of about 30 new schools. He also said that computerization program for schools is also underway. Reactions Opposition parliamentarians criticized the President for not focusing on problems during his speech. “[From the President’s speech] we could not understand what his position on the peacekeepers is; how the authorities plan to address problems… This was not a speech by a politician, it was a speech by a street-rally leader,” MP Kakha Kukava of the opposition Conservative Party said. “His information and figures about the economy were extremely exaggerated… But on the other hand, he at least did not start attacking his opponents again, which is of course positive,” MP Levan Berdzenishvili of the opposition Republican Party said. Saakashvili Delivers State of Nation Address 2005 - 10.02.2005, Civil Georgia In his first-ever state of the
nation address to the Parliament on February 10 Georgian President
Mikheil Saakashvili said that the country has made the step from being
a failed state into becoming a state since the 2003 Rose Revolution. “To gain peace we need to be a strong nation and a strong army is the major component in this process,” he said. He also listed the privatization process launched last year among those successful initiatives begun by the country’s leadership. “We need privatization in order to attract investment and to create jobs,” Saakashvili said. The President stated that the energy sector, education, the healthcare system and defense will be the sectors that the government intends to allocate revenues received from this privatization process. He said that the government “could cover all the pension and salary backlogs,” as well as increase revenues. In this regard he stressed the role of Finance Minister Zurab Nogaideli, whom the President recently nominated for the position of Prime Minister. “This was the major reason why I decided to nominate Zurab
Nogaideli. The person who could increase revenues and repay the entire
pension and salary backlog needed to be promoted,” Mikheil Saakashvili
said. Saakashvili said that despite these achievements, the country faces “numerous challenges ahead.” He listed unemployment, reform of the judiciary and education systems and self-governance among them. He said that “the government failed to create new jobs in the private sector and establish a European-style economy.” “Yes, we have fired many officials from the governmental structures and it was an irreversible process but at the same time we could not create new jobs in the private sector,” he said. Saakashvili stated that development of services and tourism is one of the major priorities for the government. “But development of infrastructure is necessary first,” he added. Saakashvili said that there should be no set backs in the process of reforming the education and judiciary system. “We should achieve a real independence for the judiciary branch, which does not exist now. Kote Kemularia [Chairman of the Supreme Court, who has been nominated as the new Justice Minister] will work hard over this issue at his new post,” Saakashvili stated. The President said he is not ready “to appoint all the officials in the region from the center.” President Saakashvili also said that the number of parliamentarians should be reduced from the current 235 to 150, as it was decided by the national referendum carried in November, 2003. “2,300,000 voters said that the number of MPs should be no more than
150 and if we fail to implement this, it will be humiliating for these
voters. There should be at least 50 MPs elected in the single-mandate
constituencies [instead of the current 75], and MPs elected through
party-list should also remain,” Mikheil Saakashvili said. Foreign Policy President Mikeil Saakashvili said that Georgia “has turned into an attractive country for the rest of the world.” He said that Georgia “has ideal relations with its neighbors,” listing Armenia, Azerbaijan and Turkey. “And we should care for these ideal relations,” Saakashvili added. He stressed that “another state in the post-Soviet space has emerged recently with aspirations similar to those of Georgia – Ukraine.” But the President emphasized that there are still problems with Russia. He called on Russia for mutual compromise. Saakashvili said he is ready to travel to Moscow and again extend a hand of friendship, “which has been hanging [in the air] for one year,” to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Last February, when President Saakashvili traveled to Moscow and met President Putin, the Georgian President said he visited Moscow in order “to extend his hand of friendship” to Putin. “We face particular problems in our relationship with Russia; however this mistake should be corrected through mutual compromises. This should occur on the basis of defending bilateral interests,” Mikheil Saakashvili said. He reiterated once again that Georgia will not host military bases of third countries on its soil. | Deutschland seit 1998 - Germany since 1998 >> bundesregierung.de/regierungserklaerungen ab 2005 bundesregierung.de/rede- aktuell bundesregierung.de/regierungserklaerungen 1998-2005 Regierung Merkel - Government Merkel >> 08.09.2009 Regierungserklärung von Bundeskanzlerin Merkel zu den aktuellen Ereignissen in Afghanistan Merkel, Angela 02.07.2009 Regierungserklärung von Bundeskanzlerin Merkel zum G8-Gipfel im Juli Merkel, Angela 18.06.2009 Regierungserklärung von Bundesaußenminister Frank-Walter Steinmeier zum Europäischen Rat in Brüssel Steinmeier, Frank-Walter 26.03.2009 Regierungserklärung von Angela Merkel zum Nato-Gipfel Merkel, Angela 19.03.2009 Regierungserklärung von Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel zum Europäischen Rat und G20-Gipfel Merkel, Angela 14.01.2009 Regierungserklärung der Bundeskanzlerin zu den Maßnahmen der Bundesregierung zur Stärkung von Wachstum und Beschäftigung Merkel, Angela 04.12.2008 Regierungserklärung von Bundeskanzlerin Merkel zum Europäischen Rat in Brüssel Merkel, Angela 15.10.2008 Regierungserklärung von Bundeskanzlerin Merkel zum Finanzmarktstabilisierungsgesetz Merkel, Angela 07.10.2008 Regierungserklärung von Bundeskanzlerin Merkel zur Lage der Finanzmärkte Merkel, Angela 29.09.2008 Regierungserklärung von Bundesfinanzminister Peer Steinbrück 26.06.2008 Regierungserklärung von Bundesaußenminister Steinmeier zur Afghanistan-Konferenz Steinmeier, Frank-Walter 19.06.2008 Regierungserklärung von Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel vom 19. Juni Merkel, Angela 18.01.2008 Regierungserklärung von Bundesumweltminister Gabriel Gabriel, Sigmar 12.12.2007 Regierungserklärung von Bundeskanzlerin Merkel zur Unterzeichnung des Vertrags von Lissabon und zum Europäischen Rat Merkel, Angela 14.06.2007 Regierungserklärung der Bundeskanzlerin: Vorschau auf den Europäischen Rat am 21. und 22. Juni 2007 Merkel, Angela 24.05.2007 Regierungserklärung von Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel zum G8-Weltwirtschaftsgipfel vom 6. bis 8. Juni 2007 in Heiligendamm Merkel, Angela 01.03.2007 Regierungserklärung der Bundeskanzlerin zum EU-Frühjahrsgipfel Merkel, Angela 14.12.2006 Regierungserklärung der Bundeskanzlerin zur Doppelpräsidentschaft Merkel, Angela 11.05.2006 Regierungserklärung von Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel Merkel, Angela 30.11.2005 Regierungserklärung von Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel Merkel, Angela 12.05.2005 Europa braucht diese Verfassung Gerhard Schröder Regierung Schröder - Government Schröder >>
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