Georgian parliament speaker slams European politicians for failing to condemn Tbilisi protests  

Speaker of the Georgian Parliament Shalva Papuashvili has expressed dissatisfaction that European countries have not condemned the participants of the protests in Tbilisi, which were accompanied by violence.

“Peaceful rallies would take place in those countries as well,” Papuashvili said, Caliber.Az reports via Russian media.

"Some European politicians call violence peace. Let them have such peace every day in their own capitals. It is disgraceful that we, and they, all watched it live," he added.

On November 28, a new wave of anti-government protests began in Georgia. The catalyst for the demonstrations was a statement by Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze. 

He announced that the ruling party, Georgian Dream – Democratic Georgia, had decided not to include EU accession talks on the agenda until the end of 2028 and to reject all budgetary grants from the EU. The prime minister noted that the decision was driven by continuous blackmail from the EU regarding the start of accession talks, demands to revoke a number of laws passed by the Georgian Parliament, and calls for sanctions against the Georgian authorities. 

On December 4, the police in Georgia conducted large-scale raids on the offices of opposition political parties and organisations. During the searches, law enforcement officials seized a significant volume of pyrotechnics, laser pointers, spray cans, paints, and gas masks. The investigative bodies said that these items were used by protesters against the police during demonstrations in Tbilisi in front of the Parliament building in the previous days. 

On the first day of the raids, authorities arrested seven individuals for organising and participating in group violence and for forming an illegal group. Among those detained were opposition party leader Nika Gvaramia from Akhali party and former Georgian MP Alexander Elisashvili. Earlier, the Georgian State Security Service announced that it was investigating a case related to preparation for a violent overthrow of the government.

By Naila Huseynova