Teona Kutaladze from Georgia
Text: Luc van Dijk (EFF trainer)
Teona Kutaladze has been working at the Georgian Parliament since 2014. She served as an assistant to a Member of the Parliament from 2014 to 2016. After Parliamentary elections in 2016, she changed her position and served as an assistant to the parliamentary group European Georgia-Movement for liberty. She is also an assistant to the Foreign Secretary of the party and deals with international issues.
Besides her work for the parliament, Teona Kutaladze is a board member of European Georgia's youth organization since 2015. She implemented and coordinated various youth empowering projects all over the county, supported by the international organizations and foundations, such as Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (KAS), Eduardo Frei Foundation (EFF), International Republican Institute (IRI) and the Dutch Institute for Multiparty Democracy (NIMD).
What does democracy mean to you?
"Democracy is not only about the majority ruling, but is also about how you govern the country in such a way as to establish liberty, equality, stability and progression for all. Democracy should guarantee the freedom of choice and it is the votes of the people that define the priorities of the government.
Democracy also involves establishing the rule of law in the country which is the very bases of building a free and inter-accountable environment. Preserving human rights is the first step to the democratic government, where the excess of powers is limited by law. For emerging democracies cementing the routine of alternative governments through elections in a civilized and peaceful manner."
What developments do you see that are shaping democracy, in a positive or negative way, in your country?
"Democracy in my country is currently being built by establishing different institutions and adopting law, that can help guarantee and improve the protection of human rights and to establish a rule of law. It is worth mentioning that the effort made by the government cannot be deemed enough, considering the political and social issues emerging not only within the country but outside its borders too.
The Association Agreement with the EU has a positive impact in building democratic institutions and is bringing us closer to the European standards and values. However, Georgia still faces the outside influences by Russia and by the Russian propaganda inside the country too. This has a negative effect and we see signs of oligarchism, people that are being intimidated and the freedom of speech is that is under threat. This is not good for the development of our democracy.”
What do you like about politics and what motivates you to work in politics?
"The importance of politics can be discussed in many ways, however the most significant link it can have is the connection with the development of democracy. In the country where the people strive to establish a democratic governance, politics should have a major role. Firstly, it gives you the clear image of where the society stands and what are the issues to be resolved and also it awards you with the unique possibility to have a say in a decision-making and making a change."
Of which political achievement are you most proud?
"I am proud to have been part of the group that protested loudly against the visit of Sergei Gavrilov in June 2019 to the in the Georgian Parliament. Sergei is a member of the communist party of the Russian Duma. He delivered a speech in the Georgian Parliament during a session of the interparliamentary assembly on Orthodoxy. He did this while sitting in a chair reserved by protocol for the Head of Parliament and in his speech he glorified the Orthodox Brotherhood of Georgia and Russia. We were angry also because earlier that week Sergei Gavrilov had voted in favor of independence of Abkhazia. We mobilized a lot of support and the streets of Tbilisi were covered by huge waves of protests demanding the resignation of the government. Because of the protests of my party as well as of the United Movement for Georgia, the Russian MP was expelled to further speak in our parliament.
Protests did not slow down after this. In November 2019 we took to the streets again because the government had failed to move further on the promised electoral reform. European Georgia demanded to have proportional electoral system. In the end the leading party, Georgian Dream went ahead to agree to a semi proportional system in place, at least lowering the threshold for other political parties to enter parliament. This was an achievement I am proud of as I feel myself as a part of the protest demonstrations, despite of the fact that we still continue our protest with the same demands."
What kind of support would you, or other young people active in your country, need more?
"Nowadays, the burning issue in Georgia is youth involvement in politics and civic activism. Young people have no interest in being politically active and are under the influence of the widespread cliché that politics is a dirty thing to do.
In my opinion, they need support to see that they are in fact future leaders and decision makers. This requires closer contact with European values, whether it will be foundations or various organizations that promote western values. Political education, opportunity to participate in various exchange programs, these are things that will really help young people in Georgia understand how to change the country for the better."
What is the added value of the trainings from organizations like the EFF to the political development of the youth in Georgia?
“The support our youngsters receive from organizations such as the EFF is invaluable. Besides the political education, young people are able to widen their views and exchange with politicians from abroad. The study trips to the EU or other EU member states help enormously to see in practice how Europe and its institutions really work.”