Prorussian government wants to smash opposition

State of emergency in Georgia

Prorussian government wants to smash opposition

The local elections in Georgia are actually considered insignificant. However, they currently trigger violent mass protests. The head of government speaks of a “coup attempt”.

According to the massive government -critical protests in the local elections in Georgia, the Prorussian government has announced the destruction of the opposition movement. Prime Minister Irakli Kobachidse spoke of a “attempted coup” of the opposition and announced further arrests and convictions on Sunday. The opposition movement, which Kobachidse referred to as the “network of foreign agents”, should “no longer be active in Georgian politics”.

After the elections on Saturday, tens of thousands of people had protested against the government, and some also tried to penetrate the presidential palace in the capital of Tbilisi. The police used tear gas and water cannons.

“Several people have already been arrested – above all the organizers of the coup attempt,” said the head of government of the Russian -friendly party of Georgian dream. “Nobody will get away with impunity,” added Kobachidse, who accused “foreign secret services” behind the protests without proving them.

According to official information, the Georgian dream had won a clear victory in the local elections on Saturday, boycotted by parts of the opposition. According to the central election commission, the candidates of the government party won landslide victories in all mayoral elections.

Tens of thousands of people then took to the streets. In Tbilis, a group of pro-European demonstrators tried to penetrate the presidential palace. Protesting barricades also set fire to protest.

The Georgian Ministry of the Interior said it had initiated investigations against five protest leaders because of “calls for violent overthrow”. According to Vice Interior Minister Alexander Darakwelidse, they face up to nine years in prison.

Opposition and demonstrators accuse the government in Tbilisa to approach Russia and to avert the EU and its democratic standards. The government rejects this.

The normally insignificant local elections of the Caucasus Republic took place in the middle of a tense political situation: in the run -up to the elections, parts of the opposition had called for boycott and protest. The detained ex-President Mikhail Saakashschwili called on his followers to use “the last chance” to save Georgian democracy. However, not all opposition parties had followed the boycott call. The opposition, which was already splintered, had continued to dispute on this question.

For the government party Georgian dream, the choice of the first important mood test after the controversial parliamentary election was a year ago. After the Georgian dream declared itself the winner after the October 2024 election, tens of thousands of government opponents protested for months.