Export of Election Falsification

Aleksi Bezhanishvili

Georgian observers sent to the presidential elections to the Ukraine made both Ukrainian and Georgian societies worry. The scandal started after the Central Election Commission decided not to allow Georgian observers to enter polling stations. CEC members said they held incorrectly filled in application forms.

Most part of CEC members represents pro-Russian candidate Victor Ianukovich whose decision seems a bit politically grounded. Two instances of the Ukrainian court confirmed this fact as well which requested the CEC to discuss the issue of Georgian observers once more. CEC satisfied the request but did not allow Georgian observers to register them.

On January 17, Ukrainian CEC once more balloted on registration of Georgian observers. According to the spread information, six members of the CEC voted for the registration, one voted against registration and 8 members did not vote at all.

Levan Tarkhnishvili, former chairperson of the Georgian Election Commission, said some precedents happened in Europe when decisions were changed for the second stage of the elections. However, decisions of the Ukrainian CEC are so difficult to predict in advance, that it is difficult to say whether the commission will change its decision in regard with Georgian observers.

Second stage of the presidential elections will be held on February 7 in the Ukraine where Victor Ianukovich and Iulia Timoshenko will be rivals. Having checked 50, 36 percent of protocols of election commissions, leader of Regions Party Victor Ianukovich is leader with 36, 86 % of votes. Prime-Minister Iulia Timoshenko is on the second place with 24, 31 %, former head of National Bank Sergei Tiginko is on the third place with 13,08 %, former speaker of the supreme Rada Arsen Iatsenuk is on the fourth place with 6,8 % of votes. As for the current president of the Ukraine Victor Iushchenko, only 4, 87 % of voters supported him. This data will not be greatly changed and population of the Ukraine will elect their president in the second stage of the elections.

Under Mask of Observers and Correspondents

Having received refusal from the CEC to observe the elections, more than 2 500 people tried to observe the elections through alternative ways. Many of them received temporary IDs and accreditation of correspondents for several Ukrainian newspapers. This fact even more annoyed representatives of the Regions Party. However, the reason for their anger was discovery of Georgian governmental officials and policemen who were sent to the Ukraine to support Iulia Timoshenko under mask of journalists. They were informed about this violation from Georgia.

“Georgian citizens who arrived in the Ukraine are representatives of various law enforcement bodies and special forces,” reported anonymous source from Georgian opposition parties to the news agency “Regnum”; the source added that most of Georgian observers are military servants who hold IDs of other people and almost all of them have been trained to fight. According to the same source of information, these people will receive 20 - 32 thousands USD for their activities in the Ukraine and fulfillment of concrete directives. If they are injured, additional compensations were also envisaged.

It is difficult to say how reliable is the information provided by the Regnum but mass media paid particular attention to several suspicious details connected with Georgian observers in the Ukraine. One of the newspapers of the Ukraine “Molnia” published list of Georgian observers where we could read names of governmental officials and police officers. For example, Kakheti News Center discovered employees of the Kakheti region office of the Constitutional Security Department and district administrations on the list.

They are: Levan Jamalashvili, head of culture department within Dedoplistskaro district administration; Nikoloz Shanshiashvili - Dedoplistskaro district deputy governor; Zaza Pirosmanashvili-employee of the Dedoplistskaro district administration; Parnaoz Beroshvili - specialist from Gurjaani district administration; Nika Nizharadze – head of culture department of Gurjaani district administration; Shota Utiashvili – Gurjaani district deputy governor; Ramaz Kerechashvili – former Gurjaani district governor; Shalva Imerlishvili – employee of the Kakheti regional office of the CSD; Guram Kakalashvili – single mandate MP from Lagodekhi district; Avtandil Lekashvili – single mandate MP from Dedoplistskaro district, etc.

Head of Chamber of Control of Georgia and Kakheti region former deputy Governor Giorgi Botkoveli was sent to the Ukraine as an observer of the presidential elections. His name was published by the “Molnia.”

According to the Kakheti News Center Botkoveli was very active during presidential and parliamentary elections in Georgia. Local observers claim he is very skilled in falsification of the elections.

Kakheti News Center reported that most governmental officials could not travel to the Ukraine though they do not speak about reasons with media. Nobody commented on Giorgi Botkoveli’s departure to the Ukraine at the Chamber of Control.

One more scandal is connected with the arrival of 400 citizens in Donetsk for “unclear reasons.” They arrived there by charter flight of Georgian Airways. Reportedly, Donetsk was considered to be center of supporters of Ianukovich. Mayor of the city said Georgian citizens are unregistered observers. He paid attention to the fact that every observer from Georgia was male.

In parallel to it, photos of Georgian citizens arrived in Donetsk by charter flight were published on the websites of the City Hall and Municipality Board of Donetsk. Samegrelo region governor Zaza Gorozia was on one of the photos. The man standing next to him looks like Iva Kachiuri, director general of the Iashvili hospital.

Representatives of the press-center of the Samegrelo region administration reported to the Interpressnews that Gorozia is in Georgia. They do not have information whether the regional governor was in Ukraine on January 15 when the photo was taken. “We know that he was in Tbilisi,” reported the spokesperson of Gorozia.

Hi, We Are Here!

Audio-recording, which was published by Ukrainian media, makes the incident about Georgian observers more scandalous; in the audio-recording President of Georgia and Prime-Minister of the Ukraine are speaking on the phone. They are speaking about the observers who were denied by the Ukrainian CEC to register. Saakashvili told Timoshenko that observers are carefully selected, mobilized and strong enough to fight. He mentions certain “Givi” who has close relationship with Timoshenko.

Similar dialogue gives double interpretation – it depends what is the position of the listener. However, it is clear that “Givi” is chairperson of the Defense and Security Committee of the Parliament of Georgia Givi Targamadze. His comments from the Ukraine were heard in Georgian media outlets. He and his observers discovered signs of election carousel during the elections.

Presence of Givi Targamadze in the Ukraine creates possibility of double interpretation of the fact. Member of the Alliance for Georgia from the New Rights Pikria Chikhradze said Givi Targamadze went to the Ukraine with his so-called “zonder brigades” and tried to falsify the elections there as he did in Georgia.

“We categorically condemn sending “zonder brigades” to the Ukraine and chairperson of the defense and security committee of the parliament is leader of the brigade. Unlike Georgia, democratic elections have been held in the Ukraine for a long time already. Thus, I do not think we should export fraud elections to our partner or non-partner country.  It is shameful that Givi Targamadze is busy with exporting fraud elections under directives and support of Mikheil Saakashvili,” reported Pikria Chikhradze to the newspaper “Resonance”.

Member of parliamentary majority, chairperson of the foreign affairs committee Akaki Minashvili does not see anything particular in the audio-recording. “I do not know how they got hold of this audio-recording and whether it is real or not, but nothing is strange here. Georgia supports democratic elections in the Ukraine and does not hide it at all,” he said.

Spokespersons of the president of Georgia and Prime-Minister of the Ukraine neither denied nor confirmed the reality of this audio-recording. Apparently, leaders of the two countries agreed not to comment on this fact.

Neither people in the Ukraine have one and common opinion about Georgian observers. For example, before elections, political scientist from the Ukraine Nikita Kirienko stated in his interview with Medianews that: “Hysteria about Georgian observers started in the Ukraine because they are considered to be supporters of Iulia Timoshenko. I think, finally Georgian observers will be allowed to the elections but they might face some problems on the place. For certain reasons, most part of Georgian observers will be sent to the polling stations in the eastern Ukraine. It will astonish Victor Ianukovich. I will state openly that Ianukovich is going to falsify elections in his region and some machinations are planned. Timoshenko will win in the western Ukraine and Kiev. Ianukovich wants to win at the expense of eastern regions. Georgian observers, according to Ianukovich’s election HQ, represent interested state. It is true, because official Tbilisi is not indifferent about the results of the elections; they are really interested who will be the president – Timoshenko or Ianukovich.”

Prime-Minister of the Ukraine Iulia Timoshenko said her rival in the presidential elections, leader of the Regions Party Victor Ianukovich was scared by Georgian observers. “Refusal to register Georgian observers by the Ukrainian CEC proves that most members of election commissions are representatives of the Regions Party and they aim to hide falsification of the elections. The members of this party did not support about 2 000 international observers who arrived here from various countries. It is shameful for our country.”

All in all, international scandal succeeded. If Ianukovich wins the elections, experts predict worsening of relationship between Georgian and the Ukraine. Simultaneously, political scientist Ramaz Sakvarelidze said it is cynical when the country, where elections are always falsified, supports another country to hold democratic elections.