Georgia jails six political figures in one week in crackdown on opposition
Georgian opposition leader Nika Melia has become the latest opposition figure to be sent to jail this week in a crackdown described by observers as an unprecedented attack on the country's democracy.The South Caucausus state has seen months of political turmoil since the government halted its path to join the EU in the wake of disputed elections.Six prominent politicians have been given jail terms, and another two are in pre-trial detention, so that most of the leaders of the pro-Western opposition are now behind bars.On Friday, Nika Melia, one of the leaders of Coalition for Change, was jailed for eight months by a court in Tbilisi and former opposition MP Givi Targamadze was given seven months.
The scale and speed of the crackdown has come as a shock, and Nika Melia accused the government of trying to break the courage of Georgians. All of the jailed politicians have been convicted of refusing to testify before a parliamentary commission and barred from holding public office for two years. In what it called "the most severe democratic collapse in Georgia's post-Soviet history", anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International said the governing Georgian Dream party, led by billionaire founder Bidzina Ivanishvili, had launched "a full-scale authoritarian offensive".In a matter of days, jail terms have also been handed down to four other opposition leaders: Giorgi Vashadze, Zurab Japaridze, Badri Japaridze and Mamuka Khazaradze. Another prominent opposition leader, Nika Gvaramia, is in pre-trial detention as well as a former defence minister."The Soviet Union has returned to our present and wants our minds to cling to the past," Nika Melia wrote on Facebook. Georgia regained its independence when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991.Norway said this week that the arrest of opposition leaders was an "unprecedented attack on Georgia's democracy" and it called for an end to "repressive actions".
After last October's elections, the opposition accused Ivanishvili's party of stealing the vote. Opposition parties then boycotted parliament and, when the European Parliament denounced the election as neither free nor fair, the ruling party halted Georgia's bid to join the European Union.Georgians have since protested in central Tbilisi every night for more than 200 nights, demanding new elections and the release of all prisoners arrested during pro-EU rallies.The government then set up an investigative parliamentary commission into the "alleged crimes" of the previous government before Georgian Dream came to power in 2012, specifically the period covering Georgia's war with Russia in 2008. Failing to comply with a "lawful request" by a parliamentary commission is a criminal offence under Georgia's criminal code. Opposition politicians have refused to testify, partly because of their boycott of parliament, but also because they reject it as a politically motivated attack on government critics. Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze told parliament on Friday that the commission was doing very important work exposing a previous government that was "entirely built on crime"."Everyone must understand once and for all that there is no place for criminals in Georgian politics."Human rights groups say 500 people have been arrested during the recent street protests and that 300 of them were subjected to torture. As many as 60 people are being held as political prisoners, they say.Respected journalist Mzia Amaglobeli remains imprisoned, and independent TV stations face censorship and financial ruin.
Earlier this week 40 civil society groups said that Bidzina Ivanishvili had "chosen to maintain power through dictatorship, and fundamental human rights are violated every day".Ivanishvili, who is under US sanctions, accumulated his wealth in Russia during the 1990s. He formally retired from politics but is widely believed to have control over all branches of government.Last month, a former confidant of Ivanishvili who went on the run said he was "kidnapped from abroad" and flown back to Georgia by force as a political prisoner.Giorgi Bachiashvili had been on trial in Georgia accused of misappropriating millions of dollars in a case he said was politically motivated.Georgian authorities say Bachiashvili, 39, was convicted of a crime while in absentia and will serve his jail sentence.His lawyer, Robert Amsterdam, told the BBC he was deeply concerned for his safety: "Too many people see him as a highly competent political figure."
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Georgia jails six political figures in one week in crackdown on opposition
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JAMnews
11 hours ago
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Georgian opposition figure arrested after testifying at Hague tribunal on 2008 war
Opposition arrests continue in Georgia Opposition figure and former chair of the parliamentary committee on defence and security (2008–2012), Givi Targamadze, has been sentenced to seven months in prison and barred from holding public office for two years for failing to appear before a parliamentary investigative commission. The commission was set up to examine the actions of the Saakashvili administration between 2003 and 2012. On 5 February 2025, the Georgian Dream-led parliament established an investigative commission to examine the activities of the United National Movement government. The body is officially titled the 'Temporary Parliamentary Investigative Commission on the Activities of the Regime and Political Figures of the 2003–2012 Period.' Georgian Dream announced the commission's formation on 9 January 2025. According to the party's parliamentary leader, Mamuka Mdinaradze, the commission will operate for six months and present its findings for discussion and approval during the first week of the September session. Givi Targamadze was a witness at The Hague tribunal in the case concerning the 2008 war. Russian President Vladimir Putin had called for his arrest as early as 2012. At Russia's request, Interpol issued a 'red notice' for Targamadze in 2013 — a call for global law enforcement agencies to locate and provisionally detain him pending extradition or similar legal action. However, Interpol later ruled that the notice violated its own statutes and removed Targamadze from the wanted list. Nevertheless, he remains wanted by Russia on charges of inciting unrest and organising terrorism. In addition, Targamadze was sentenced in absentia by Belarusian authorities to 25 years in prison for his support of the Belarusian democratic opposition. Targamadze was summoned to appear before the parliamentary investigative commission examining the actions of the Saakashvili government. According to the former MP, it is ironic that Georgian Dream and then-Justice Minister Tea Tsulukiani — now head of the parliamentary commission investigating the Saakashvili government — claimed the Hague tribunal's ruling on the 2008 war as their victory, when it was Targamadze himself who provided key testimony at the tribunal. 'I was a witness in the Hague tribunal's case on the 2008 war. Based on my personal testimony, five arrest warrants were issued — for General Borisov, for then–prime minister and later interior minister of the so-called South Ossetia, Chochiev, who was Russian and personally oversaw a detention centre where many Georgian citizens were tortured, and also for the so-called ombudsman, who was part of the same system. I currently hold witness status at the Hague tribunal. I never spoke about this before — I tried to maintain a certain decorum and preserve some relationships. But now that the Georgian Dream government has strayed so far from the civilised world, there's no point in staying silent. The irony is that Tsulukiani, then Justice Minister, declared the Hague ruling a victory for herself and the Georgian Dream government — and then summoned me to her commission, where she shouted that I should be arrested,' Targamadze said. When asked whether the Georgian Dream parliamentary commission would seek to challenge the Hague tribunal's findings, Targamadze replied: 'We've seen the questioning of the former chief of general staff and the head of the peacekeeping forces — and we've seen the tone. It was a continuous attempt to blame the Georgian side. Yet both Strasbourg and The Hague conducted investigations and delivered rulings which found no fault with Georgia for any part of the war. Still, this parliamentary commission is trying to dispute that.' Asked whether he feared for his safety after publicly stating he had testified in The Hague, the former MP responded: 'I understand that this might put me in greater danger — but that doesn't matter. […] Putin once spent four minutes at a press conference talking about me. If he really wants me dead, he'll kill me eventually. I'm alive by chance — what else would be protecting me? So, it is what it is. I took this step consciously.' Реакция Запада на приговор Таргамадзе Chair of the Estonian Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee, Marko Mihkelson, reacted to the sentencing of Givi Targamadze on social media platform X: 'Russia is carrying out a massive offensive inside Georgia, with the support of a Georgian puppet government.' Russia is carrying out a massive offensive inside Georgia, with the support of a Georgian puppet government. — Marko Mihkelson 🇪🇪🇺🇦 (@markomihkelson) June 27, 2025 On 24 June, the court found Giorgi Vashadze, leader of the Strategy Aghmashenebeli party, guilty of failing to appear before the parliamentary investigative commission examining the actions of the Saakashvili government from 2003 to 2012. He was sentenced to seven months in prison and banned from holding public office for two years. On 23 June 2025, a court controlled by Georgian Dream sentenced three opposition leaders to prison: Mamuka Khazaradze (Lelo), Badri Japaridze (Strong Georgia), and Zurab Japaridze (Coalition for Change). Nika Melia, Zurab Japaridze, and Nika Gvaramia (Coalition for Change), along with former Defence Minister Irakli Okruashvili, are already serving prison sentences for failing to appear before the same parliamentary commission.
