Between Russian pressure and European influence: Georgia is at a crossroads. How is the country faring ahead of parliamentary elections?
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00:00We are in Georgia, ahead of parliamentary elections there, in a bid to understand why
00:11is this vote seen as so crucial for the country's future.
00:15If we continue our political way like this, we are going to become a part of Russia.
00:22Many members of her generation say the current government is steering Georgia back towards
00:27Russia by exploiting fears of another war.
00:30On October 26th, peace will triumph over war.
00:35Can the opposition protect Georgia's EU aspirations?
00:41Do we want prosperity in Europe or misery and isolation?
00:47What's at stake for Georgia?
00:51Nanooka Mestvyrishvili is 18 years old.
01:05She has put US study plans on ice to join an NGO in her home country, Georgia.
01:12Today she is on the road, informing people about upcoming parliamentary elections.
01:19We are going to talk to people and tell them that this election is really important.
01:27I am a little bit afraid and that's why we need to give people information about that.
01:37And we need to make them believe what we believe.
01:43We need to live in Europe.
01:45She protested what's known as the Foreign Agent Bill, which critics say follows the
01:50Russian authoritarian example, suppressing critical voices.
01:54No to the Russian law.
01:55Yes to Europe.
01:57According to polls, more than 80% of Georgians want to be part of the EU.
02:02Critics say the government wants them to be dragged back into Russia's orbit.
02:08Today volunteers are heading to rural areas where people are much worse off and still
02:13unsure which way to vote.
02:17Nanooka believes state media deliberately misinforms the public to secure their votes
02:22and works to counter this influence.
02:24In regions there is not as much information as we have in capital.
02:33The propaganda works well and sometimes this information spreads all around the regions.
02:40We want to make sure that people in regions know the truth about what's going on in our
02:46country.
02:51What issues are most Georgians concerned about?
02:55The fear of Russian troops on their territory.
03:01In 2008 Russia and Georgia waged war against each other.
03:06The fighting lasted five days on Georgian territory.
03:09As a result, Moscow recognised the independence of breakaway republics, Abkhazia and South
03:15Ossetia, regions that have been under Russian control ever since.
03:20The ruling party Georgian Dream is widely seen as pro-Russian.
03:24The government is fuelling fears over a mysterious global war party with alleged plans to start
03:31a war in Georgia, a conspiracy theory.
03:35Although divided over many issues, the opposition is united in its commitment to continue Georgia's
03:41democratic path and join the EU.
03:45This area is known as the Zone of Fear, the border region between Georgia and South Ossetia.
03:51There is a Russian military base close by.
03:54Soldiers intimidate locals and last year a villager was shot and killed along the occupation
04:00line.
04:05Are you afraid of Russians?
04:09Yes.
04:11As if you're not scared.
04:12I hate them.
04:13I know you hate them, but you're scared too.
04:16You don't want them to kill you.
04:19Goga and Misha were born in this refugee settlement near Gori, the biggest town close to the occupation
04:25line.
04:26The five-day war forced their parents from breakaway South Ossetia, but they consider
04:31their real home to be their parents' village, a place they've never seen.
04:37Liana also settled here after fleeing the war.
04:40Russia's military presence is a constant reminder of her tragedy.
04:44After the invasion of Ukraine, the former teacher is afraid Russia could attack Georgia
04:49again.
04:50The ruling Georgian dream is exploiting these fears by promising peace with Russia.
04:56The Georgian dream calls for better relations with Russia.
05:00Yes, they should be improved.
05:02What do you think?
05:03Does it make any sense to fight?
05:09Can such a small country fight a war?
05:16The harvest season has begun.
05:19Elsa and Tsitsina own an apple farm and keep a close eye on political developments.
05:25Even if the ruling party claims it will bring Georgia into the EU fold, the farmers don't
05:30believe those intentions are genuine.
05:38They're saying we're going to join the EU in 2030.
05:41Maybe other people believe it, but I don't.
05:46What do you think they're up to?
05:49I think they're actually moving closer to Russia.
05:52Who do you want to be with, Europe or Russia?
05:55Personally, I don't want to be with Russia.
05:58They brought us so much misery, killed so many people.
06:01In fact, the EU has officially halted Georgian accession to the EU due to the contested foreign
06:09agent law.
06:10The ruling party's campaign posters are everywhere.
06:13They're actively campaigning even in the most remote villages, promising new jobs and
06:19improved infrastructure, like this local politician from the Georgian Dream Party.
06:24Everything will be done in stages.
06:26We've already done a lot and more is coming.
06:31Do you know what it looks like here?
06:34If you want to come with me, I can show you how broken the irrigation system in our garden
06:39is.
06:46Georgia is a neutral country, a peaceful state.
06:50We're trying to ensure that there is peace in the whole world and in Georgia.
06:58Local politicians from the ruling party often present themselves as custodians who don't
07:03shy away from big league politics.
07:07Meanwhile, Nanooka has reached Zastopone.
07:10Her first stop is the local market.
07:13We're going to Bazaar.
07:16There is our target audience.
07:19There are people who don't have really great financial circumstances.
07:25So we can talk to them and make them believe that if they vote, they can change their future.
07:35The students are also handing out information about how Russia is endangering Georgia's
07:41democratic progress.
07:43Nanooka soon realizes how challenging it is to debunk some of the ruling party's narratives.
07:55Here you can read in this pamphlet what benefits we got from the EU and what Russia did to
08:00us.
08:01All right, all right.
08:02What kind of a party is this pro-European thing?
08:08I'm not campaigning for any specific parties.
08:11It's for any pro-European coalition.
08:13See, the kid is being smart, not like you.
08:18We don't want you to have to stand here behind the stall.
08:23We want you to get retirement money so you can travel.
08:27That won't happen for another 200 years.
08:39I need energy because there are so many victims of propaganda.
08:45But she does clock up a small success today.
08:48He is going to go to the election.
08:52She was in doubt.
08:54But after I told her that we need you to go to the election, she said, OK, if our young
09:01people need it, I'm going to do it.
09:03And I'm really happy.
09:06It seems that many people here have lost their faith in politics.
09:11But Nanooka keeps going.
09:12She's on the road all over the country for three weeks until election day.
09:18Nanooka says it's a race against time.
09:21He does not think that our future is in European unions.
09:26Our next stop is the regional town of Rustavi, which is hosting a campaign rally for Bidzina
09:32Ivanishvili, a former prime minister and oligarch accused by the opposition of having close
09:38ties with Russia.
09:39In 2011, he founded the Georgian Dream Party, which has been in power for the past 12 years
09:45and consolidated control over the country's key institutions.
09:49I guarantee that if you support the Georgian Dream in October, no one can drag Georgia
09:55into war.
09:59Supporters include many public servants who attend the rally in organized groups.
10:03Observers say some are pressured to vote for the ruling party.
10:07In their speeches, Georgian Dream politicians threaten to ban the liberal opposition and
10:12often attack the West.
10:14But at the same time, their party's posters twinkle with the stars of the EU flag.
10:19This is intended to reassure voters of its pro-European cause, a contradictory promise.
10:25This party will lead you to Europe?
10:26Yes, it will indeed.
10:28Even though Brussels has halted the EU integration process?
10:33No one can stop it, believe me.
10:37Back in Tbilisi, Nanooka Mstvirsvili says she's afraid Georgia may fall under Moscow's
10:43influence if the ruling party stays in power.
10:46For her, freedom and genuine peace, not one that is dictated from above, are only possible
10:52with strong ties to the democratic West.
10:55If we continue our political way like this, we are going to become a part of Russia without
11:02even war.
11:04And why our ancestors fighted so hard for our freedom?
11:11We need to ask this question to ourselves.
11:15Nanooka is concerned at levels of government corruption.
11:19She says officials care only about their own financial well-being and political survival,
11:24and not about the health of the country's democracy.
11:30I don't think that they're going to win.
11:33I don't want to give up after that.
11:35I'm thinking of the ways how can I fight.
11:40I mean, I want a better future and I'm just not going to let them take this away from
11:50me.
11:51I want a better country for me and also for everyone around me.
11:55They want a country for only themselves and it's not right.
12:02To encourage each other, the volunteers sing the EU anthem in Georgian.
12:11After the election, Nanooka will finally be going to study in the US.
12:15She hopes that the fate of her country won't be gambled away in the vote, because she wants
12:20to come back.