Georgian opposition leader arrested, beaten unconscious as Tbilisi protests continue

Prominent Georgian opposition leader and former journalist Nika Gvaramia is recovering after being beaten unconscious by police Wednesday amid pro-Europe protests in Tbilisi, according to his lawyer.  

Gvaramia, head of the Akhali party under the Coalition for Change umbrella, was detained Wednesday during police searches of opposition parties’ headquarters in the Georgian capital, according to media reports. 

Gvaramia was repeatedly hit in the stomach until he lost consciousness before being dragged into a police vehicle, according to local media reports. 

Gvaramia is Georgia’s former justice minister and the founder of the pro-opposition broadcaster Mtavari Arkhi. He was jailed from 2022 to 2023 on charges he and press freedom experts rejected as retaliatory. 

The high-profile arrest comes amid protests that have been continuing since the ruling Georgian Dream party said it was halting the country’s bid to start talks on joining the European Union. Opinion polls show that about 80% of Georgians support joining the EU. 

Gvaramia’s lawyer, Dito Sadzaglishvili, said Thursday that Gvaramia’s health is now “satisfactory.” 

“He believes that now, of course, is the time for the Georgian people to calmly, firmly and courageously continue to protest and fight against the Russian regime,” the lawyer said, according to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 

Gvaramia was arrested for “petty hooliganism” and not complying with police orders, his lawyer said. A court hearing is expected to take place within 48 hours of his arrest, according to Sadzaglishvili. 

Police have also detained Aleko Elisashvili, a leader of the Strong Georgia opposition party, as well as a leader of the youth protest movement, and at least six other members of opposition parties. 

The detentions come as thousands of pro-EU protesters continue to gather in Tbilisi, even as police respond with water cannons, tear gas and rubber bullets. More than 330 protesters have been arrested, with rights groups saying many have been beaten in detention. 

Governments, including the United States, have condemned the excessive use of force and criticized Georgian Dream for putting EU accession on hold. 

Journalists attacked, NGOs raided 

At least 50 journalists have been injured during violent police dispersals of demonstrations since they began on November 28, according to multiple reports. 

“The protection of journalists is a hallmark of democratic societies,” Gulnoza Said, the Europe and Central Asia program coordinator at the Committee to Protect Journalists, said in a statement. 

“Georgian authorities’ failure to address the extensive and shocking police violence against journalists covering ongoing mass protests signals a clear departure from democratic values,” Said added. 

In addition to raiding the offices of opposition parties, police have raided the offices of various nongovernmental organizations, according to local media reports.  

Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze of the Georgian Dream party said the raids targeted those who fostered violence during protests in an effort to overturn his government. “I wouldn’t call this repression; it is more of a preventive measure than repression,” he said. 

Protests initially erupted in late October after a contested election that allowed the Georgian Dream party to remain in power, even as monitoring groups said the vote was marked by an array of violations. 

Opposition parties and rights groups accuse Georgian Dream of pushing Georgia — which was once lauded as among the freest former Soviet republics — away from the West and closer to Russia. 

Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili refused to recognize the official election results and contested them in the constitutional court, which rejected her appeal on Tuesday. 

Gvaramia warned that the elections would be rigged when he spoke with VOA last October. 

“Either we have democracy on the ground, or we are Russia. There is no third option from my perspective,” Gvaramia told VOA at the time. 

Last year, Gvaramia was recognized with an International Press Freedom Award from the Committee to Protect Journalists in New York. 

“Democracy will never die,” he told VOA last year. “I don’t need anything except democracy.” 
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