Davit Khajishvili

Davit Khajishvili
Member of the Parliament of Georgia
Incumbent
Assumed office
11 December 2020
Personal details
Born (1988-02-10) 10 February 1988 (age 36)
Political partyUnited National Movement
EducationTernopil Pedagogical University
University of Lviv

Davit Khajishvili (Georgian: დავით ხაჯიშვილი; born 10 February 1988) is a Georgian businessman and politician who has served as a member of Parliament since 2020. A member of the opposition United National Movement, he has been characterized as a vocal supporter of Ukraine since the Russian invasion of 2022.

Early life and career

Davit Khajishvili was born on 10 February 1988. Moving to Ukraine as a student, he received a tourism degree from the Ternopil Volodymyr Hnatiuk National Pedagogical University in 2011, after which he returned to Georgia and worked in the public sector, including in the Department of Tourism and Resorts of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara, the Department of Sports and Youth Affairs of Adjara, and the City Hall of Batumi until 2014. He was noticed as an activist during that time, participating in a public protest in Batumi against Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych's decision to reject the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement.[1] He received a degree in International Relations in 2015 from Ukraine's University of Lviv.[2]

Between 2015 and 2020, Khajishvili worked as the Rergional Director of ORBI Group, a large Georgian real estate developer responsible for several luxury projects in Batumi. He is married to Tamar Ninidze, another employee of that company.

Political career

One of the largest financial contributors to the opposition United National Movement,[3] Davit Khajishvili was listed in 22nd position on the party's electoral list during the 2020 parliamentary elections,[4] although he originally refused to take his seat after allegations surfaced on massive voter fraud committed by the government.[5] Following a short-lived EU-facilitated agreement between the opposition and the ruling Georgian Dream party, he rescinded his resignation in May 2021 and has since served on the European Integration Committee. He is one of the youngest MPs in Georgia.

Khajishvili has been a vocal supporter of Ukraine since the Russian invasion started in February 2022. On 28 February, he was a signatory to a petition calling on Parliament to invite Ukrainian Ambassador Ihor Dolhov to an extraordinary hearing.[6] On 24 March, he visited Kyiv along UNM's parliamentary leader Khatia Dekanoidze to show solidarity for Ukraine,[7] attending a session of the Verkhovna Rada[8] and meeting with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's head of administration Andrii Yermak.[9] He was also one of 48 MPs to sign a joint appeal to Georgian Dream calling on the party to end its attacks on some Western officials.[10]

References

  1. ^ "უკრაინის მხარდასაჭერად ბათუმში აქცია გაიმართა" [Ukraine support rally held in Batumi]. InterPressNews (in Georgian). 2013-11-26. Retrieved 2022-12-11.
  2. ^ "Official Biography". Parliament of Georgia. Retrieved 2022-12-11.
  3. ^ "From November until today, the parties received a total of more than 3 million donations, of which 2.5 million GEL came to "Georgian Dream"". InterPressNews. 2022-03-22. Retrieved 2022-12-11.
  4. ^ "UNM-led Bloc Unveils Proportional-Party List". Civil Georgia. 2020-10-01. Retrieved 2022-12-11.
  5. ^ "Committee on Procedural Issues Supports Termination of 49 MPs' Mandates". Georgia Today. 2021-01-29. Retrieved 2022-12-11.
  6. ^ "The parliamentary opposition addresses Shalva Papuashvili with a proposal to invite the ambassador of Ukraine to the plenary session". InterPressNews. 2022-02-28. Retrieved 2022-12-11.
  7. ^ "GD, Opposition Agree on Joint Ukraine Trip, UNM Rejects". Civil Georgia. 2022-04-14. Retrieved 2022-12-11.
  8. ^ "Members of the "National Movement" attended the session in the Rada". InterPressNews. 2022-03-24. Retrieved 2022-12-11.
  9. ^ "Members of the "National Movement" met with the head of the administration of the President of Ukraine". InterPressNews. 2022-03-25. Retrieved 2022-12-11.
  10. ^ "48 opposition MPs appeal to "Georgian Dream" in a joint statement to "immediately stop the slanderous and disinformation campaign" against the USA and the European Union". InterPressNews. 2022-08-04. Retrieved 2022-12-11.