• Tens of thousands of people march in Georgia’s capital, Tbilisi, demanding that the government step down.
• Demonstrators angry over country’s failure to formally secure candidacy for EU membership.
• EU leaders decided last month to postpone Georgian application for membership pending political reforms.

Tens of thousands of people marched in Georgia on Sunday, demanding that the government resign over the country’s failure to formally secure candidacy for EU membership.

Since late June, when EU leaders decided to postpone Tbilisi’s application for membership pending sweeping political reforms, the Black Sea nation has been gripped by mass protests.

The biggest demonstrations in decades, which saw at least 120,000 take to the streets on June 20, are being organised by leading pro-democracy groups and supported by opposition parties.

On Sunday evening, tens of thousands of demonstrators gathered outside Georgian parliament, blocking traffic at the main thoroughfare of the Georgian capital, Tbilisi.

Waving Georgian and EU flags, demonstrators sang the national anthem, before the EU anthem, the Ode to Joy, was performed at the rally.

Many held placards that read “We are Europe.”

On Facebook, the rally’s organizers earlier called on Bidznia Ivanishvili, founder of the country’s ruling party, to “relinquish executive power and transfer it, in a constitutional manner, to a government of national accord”.

A new cabinet “will carry out the reforms required by the EU, which will automatically bring us the status of an EU membership candidate,” the statement said.

“A next stage of our protests begins today. We will not disperse.”

Ivanishvili, Georgia’s richest man, is widely believed to call the shots in the country despite having no official political role.

Last month, the European Parliament passed a non-binding resolution to impose personal sanctions on Ivanishvili for his “destructive role” in Georgia’s political and economic life.

He insists he has retired from politics.

Georgia applied for EU membership together with Ukraine and Moldova, days after Russia on February 24 invaded Ukraine.

On June 23, EU leaders granted formal candidate status to Kyiv and Chisinau but said Tbilisi could only become an official candidate once outstanding issues were addressed.

EU leaders nonetheless “recognised Georgia’s European perspective”, a move that President Salome Zurabishvili hailed as “historic”.

Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili has said his government is “mobilised” to meet EU requirements on time “so that we get candidate status as soon as possible”.

The deferral of Georgia’s candidacy became a foregone conclusion after the European Commission — the EU’s executive arm — said on June 20 that Tbilisi must implement a number of reforms by the end of 2022 before it is put on a formal membership path.

The EU conditions include ending political polarisation, improving the freedom of the press and the courts, electoral reforms and “de-oligarchisation”.

“They (Georgians) have a clear path… When these criteria are met, the candidate status will be granted automatically,” the EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said on June 23.

The ruling Georgian Dream party’s government has faced mounting international criticism over perceived backsliding on democracy, seriously damaging Tbilisi’s ties with Brussels.

The party has defended its democratic record and accused the opposition of plotting “overthrow of the authorities through anti-government rallies.”

Plans to join NATO and the EU are enshrined in Georgia’s constitution and are supported by at least 80% of the population, according to polls.

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