Nino Burjanadze, a former parliamentary speaker, told supporters on November 23, that early elections and change of the current authorities through “constitutional means” would be among her new party’s goals.

About 1,800 activists of Burjanadze’s new party – Democratic Movement-United Georgia – packed a basketball court in downtown Tbilisi at an inaugural congress of the party on November 23 – on the fifth anniversary of the Rose Revolution.

“Me and my political team are demanding already from today early elections and we will fight for that, of course within the constitutional and democratic framework,” said Burjanadze, who quit the ruling National Movement Party a month before the May 21 parliamentary elections because of the disagreement over the party list.

She said that her party would engage in cooperation and consultations with those opposition parties, which have similar political platforms, in order to achieve early elections. Burjanadze, however, declined to specify potential partners. There have been speculations in the Georgian media recently that the New Rights Party and the Republican Party could be such partners; no official confirmation, however, have been made by those parties on the matter.
 
In her address to the congress, Burjanadze reiterated her tough criticism towards her former allies and said the current authorities had “no moral right” to stay in power.

“The authorities have lost confidence both within and outside the country,” she said. “Today we need wise policies and restoring [Georgia’s] image of a reliable partner and then we need a dialogue with everyone in order to secure our country’s interests through this dialogue.”

At the congress, Burjanadze presented her party’s 15-member political council – the party’s major governing body. The council member, David Pataraia, a lawyer and a former deputy chairman of the Georgian National Communications Commission, has become a general secretary of the party.

Other members of the council are: Vakhtang Kolbaia, who served as deputy head of the Abkhaz government-in-exile during Eduard Shevardnadze’s presidency; Temur Murgulia, a former head of the parliament’s budgetary office; Zaza Sopromadze, a former chief of the state pension fund; Davit Cheishvili, a former lawmaker; Giorgi Gegelashvili, a former lawmaker; Davit Chezhia, who served as an administrative director of Tbilisi Water, a water distribution company in the capital city; Gaga Gabrichidze, a PhD in international law; Nodar Khaduri, a former deputy finance minister; Roman Kusiani, a former lawmaker; Shalva Obgaidze, a chairman of Georgia’s Auto Federation; Tamar Tsitsishvili, a doctor; Bakur Mgeliashvili, a lawyer; Zurab Bigvava, PhD in psychology and Manana Salukvadze.