Georgia, a Central Asian country, is set to hold parliamentary elections on October 26. In the lead-up to the elections, opposition party member Giorgi Vashadze has introduced the blockchain identity verification protocol Rarimo, which utilizes zero-knowledge proofs. The goal of this protocol is to integrate national identification cards onto the blockchain. Similar issues, including proof of personhood (PoP) and digital governance, have been topics of discussion among Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin and others. Solutions such as Worldcoin, zkPass, zkMe, and zkKYC have also been proposed for similar issues.
Zero-knowledge proofs are a cryptographic technology that allows individuals to prove the occurrence of an event without revealing personal information. For example, if someone wants to prove to a bank that they have a job without disclosing the specifics of their job, zero-knowledge proofs can be used to verify the claim while maintaining privacy. Many PoP applications utilize zero-knowledge proofs to protect sensitive information.
In Georgia, the opposition party United National Movement (UNM) has partnered with Rarilabs to release the blockchain identity verification protocol Rarimo. Rarilabs is the development organization behind Rarimo, which is a privacy-centric blockchain protocol based on zero-knowledge proofs. It establishes United Space, which is part of the UNM’s vision for digital governance and aims to simplify government services and experiment with universal basic income (UBI).
Due to increasing foreign interference in the country, United Space provides an unmonitored and tamper-proof voting mechanism to address these issues. The protocol allows citizens to participate in elections anonymously, ensuring privacy protection and reducing the risk of voter manipulation. This innovative approach enhances the security and transparency of the election process.
Giorgi Vashadze stated that using zero-knowledge proofs to verify voter eligibility and identity allows for broader citizen participation and brings more transparency and trust to the legislative process. He referred to this as digital democracy or liquid democracy, where citizens can revoke their votes and support for officials who make incorrect decisions and transfer them to others.
To address low voter turnout in Georgia, United Space has introduced a voter reward system where citizens not only receive rewards for voting but also for participating in civic activities. For example, voting on legislative referendums can earn citizens points that can be converted into the country’s currency, the lari.
Giorgi Vashadze expressed that if UNM wins the elections and forms a government, they plan to use the protocol as a way to involve the people in governance. The platform would display laws or draft bills and allow protocol users to vote on them. Giorgi Vashadze envisions a system where a certain percentage of citizen consent is required before a draft bill is submitted to the parliament.
However, whether this protocol will be implemented in the country depends on the outcome of the elections on October 26. Although UNM has promised to use the protocol for governance if elected, there are currently no detailed technical documents available, raising questions about whether it is merely a publicity issue that will be further developed.
In a similar development, legislator Ku Jujun, who represents a non-constituency seat, announced at an event held by Worldcoin in San Francisco yesterday that his office will collaborate with Sam Altman and Alex Blania to promote a new initiative for citizen participation in the AI era, focusing on digital equality, technology against fraud, and real-person privacy verification. The project will be developed by the staff of the Bao Bo office, and Ku Jujun stated that he will make efforts to promote international cooperation between the World ID real-person voting platform TAIVote and the World App.
PoP: Proof of personhood
UBI: Universal basic income
ZK: Zero-knowledge
Digital governance