Official Statement of Ertoba

Ertoba categorically condemns the initiative proposed by the Government of Georgia to restrict voting rights for Georgian emigrants.

This is not a procedural correction or a technical update to the law, as the government tries to present it. This is a targeted attempt to strip more than one million Georgian citizens of their constitutional right and their homeland, and to remove them from active political participation.

The Georgian diaspora understands very well the cost of loving the homeland from afar. A single flight to vote can cost more than a full month of income. We work abroad, we study, we support our families, and we send money that keeps our households alive and keeps the national economy breathing. We supported Georgia long before the government became afraid of the diaspora’s political involvement.

We are facing a government that tells us: “Send the money, keep our economy stable, but stay silent.”

They are not only taking away our right to vote. They are also taking the homeland away from the people who are keeping it alive socially and economically.

Accepting billions of dollars in remittances while stripping those same citizens of their right to vote is morally wrong. It is politically dangerous. It is a betrayal of the very people the government claims to represent.

Ertoba’s Position

A government that truly values its people expands their participation in every aspect of social and political life. It does not punish them by blocking their voting rights. A government should not use geographic distance as a weapon.

Restricting the voting rights of the Georgian diaspora:

Violates the Constitution of GeorgiaContradicts international democratic standardsHarms national security by alienating the group that maintains the country’s financial stabilityUndermines Georgia’s long term demographic and economic sustainability

We Demand:

Immediate withdrawal of the proposed initiativeModern voting mechanisms for Georgian citizens living abroadSafe electronic or postal voting optionsIncreased number of polling stations outside GeorgiaFull political recognition of the diaspora as an integral part of our nation and its inclusion in ongoing political processes

If Georgia benefits from our labor, then Georgia must also respect the vote of every emigrant.

We appeal to all our fellow Georgians abroad. Voting is not a luxury. It is our constitutional right to express our voice. It is the line that decides whether we are citizens or people exiled from the homeland only on paper. Do not allow them to silence you. Your vote is the main tool you have to influence the future of Georgia.