Tbilisi mayor calls protesters "small minority", says voters support ruling team

Protesters are a minority, and their numbers are irrelevant since the Georgian people have already rejected them at elections, confirming support for the ruling team, Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze said.

On Friday, November 28, protest marches are scheduled in the capital, Caliber.Az reports, citing Sputnik Georgia.

Two marches are planned: at 19:00 local time, citizens will move from Tbilisi State University and the old building of the Georgian Public Broadcaster, and at 20:00, they will gather near the parliament. Opposition parties will join the demonstrations.

“What should I expect? You can see their state! It doesn’t matter whether there are 10 or 30 of them. They are a minority. That is a fact. The Georgian people said ‘no’ to them in parliamentary elections and also in municipal elections,” Kaladze stated.

He emphasised that any attempts to “force changes” will fail, as the Constitution and laws ensure an appropriate response.

The mayor added that European integration is being used as leverage against the government because Georgia did not meet certain demands, did not open a second front or join sanctions, which has fueled speculation and criticism from some European bureaucrats in recent months.

“The main priority is the interests of the Georgian people,” he said.

Earlier, on November 28, 2024, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze announced the government’s decision to postpone EU accession talks until 2028 and to forgo grants for the government. He said the issue of opening EU negotiations is being used as a tool to pressure Georgia, similar to the handling of the country’s candidate status for EU membership.

The decision sparked a wave of protests in Georgia. Demonstrators accused the government of abandoning European integration and demanded the reversal of the decision. Additional demands were later added, including the release of detainees and early parliamentary elections.

The Georgian authorities rejected these demands and moved to tighten regulations on protests, including banning targeted pickets at strategic sites, unjustified road blockages, wearing masks, and increasing fines and criminal penalties for violations.

 By Jeyhun Aghazada