Latest news with #GeorgiaDream
Al Jazeera
01-07-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Another opposition leader jailed in Georgia amid deepening crackdown
A court in Georgia has sentenced prominent opposition figure Nika Gvaramia to eight months in prison, amid a deepening crackdown on critics of the ruling Georgian Dream party. Gvaramia, the co-leader of the opposition Akhali party, was also barred from holding office for two years. The court imposed the sentence on Tuesday over his refusal to cooperate with a parliamentary commission tasked with investigating alleged wrongdoing under ex-President Mikheil Saakashvili, a pro-Western reformer currently serving a 12-and-a-half-year prison term. Several other leading opponents of Georgian Dream have been jailed on similar charges to Gvaramia, including Giorgi Vashadze, a former deputy justice minister, who received a seven-month prison sentence last week. The crackdown has led to growing accusations against the governing party that it is trampling on democracy amid continuing protests in the wake of last year's disputed elections. Speaking to the AFP news agency on Tuesday, Gvaramia's lawyer Dito Sadzaglishvili said the verdict against his client was 'unlawful' and 'part of the government's attempt to crush all dissent in Georgia'. Growing criticism The British government on Monday denounced the crackdown on opposition figures and summoned the country's charge d'affaires. 'The imprisonment of prominent opposition leaders is the latest attempt by the Georgian government to crack down on freedoms and stifle dissent,' the United Kingdom's Foreign Office said. 'The UK Government will not hesitate to consider further action should Georgia not return to respecting and upholding democracy, freedoms and human rights,' it added. The NGO Amnesty International also criticised the government, saying last week in reaction to Vashadze's sentencing that it had 'serious concerns over the misuse of legislative, policing and other powers to silence government critics in Georgia'. The human rights organisation specifically took aim at the parliamentary commission linked to the arrests of opposition figures. 'With its status disputed, the commission has been instrumentalised to target former public officials for their principled opposition,' said Denis Krivosheev, Amnesty's deputy director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia. After Georgian Dream claimed victory in a contested election in October, the European Union candidate nation experienced mass protests. Critics accuse the government of undermining democracy and of bringing the country close to Moscow, allegations the governing party denies. The EU has said some 80 percent of the population supports Georgia's bid to join the bloc, a commitment enshrined in its constitution. Amid allegations of democratic backsliding, the United States and several European countries have sanctioned some Georgian government officials.
Arab News
01-07-2025
- Politics
- Arab News
Georgia jails another opposition figure in crackdown on dissent
TBILISI: Georgia on Tuesday jailed prominent opposition figure Nika Gvaramia for eight months, the latest in a wave of arrests targeting politicians, activists, and journalists critical of the ruling party. The EU candidate nation has been gripped by political unrest since the disputed parliamentary elections last October, when the ruling Georgian Dream party declared victory, sparking mass protests. Demonstrators accuse the ruling party, which shelved EU membership talks, of veering toward authoritarian rule and steering the country closer to Moscow — accusations the government rejects. On Tuesday, a Tbilisi court sentenced Gvaramia — the co-leader of the key opposition Akhali party — to eight months in prison and barred him from holding public office for two years, his lawyer Dito Sadzaglishvili told AFP. 'The verdict is unlawful and part of the government's attempt to crush all dissent in Georgia,' he said. Gvaramia was sentenced for refusing to cooperate with a parliamentary commission investigating alleged abuses under imprisoned former president Mikheil Saakashvili. Nearly all of Georgia's opposition leaders have been jailed this month on similar charges. Saakashvili, a pro-Western reformer, is currently serving a 12-and-a-half-year prison term on charges widely denounced by rights groups as politically driven. Opposition figures have rejected the commission's legitimacy, accusing the ruling Georgian Dream party of using it as a tool to suppress dissent. Amnesty International said last week that the 'disputed' commission 'has been instrumentalized to target former public officials for their principled opposition.' Ahead of last year's elections, Georgian Dream announced plans to outlaw all major opposition parties. Brussels has said Georgia's democratic backsliding derails it from its longstanding EU membership bid enshrined in the country's constitution and supported — according to opinion polls — by some 80 percent of the population. The United States and several European countries have imposed sanctions on some Georgian Dream officials.
Yahoo
27-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Opposition leaders jailed as political crisis deepens in Georgia
Four key opposition figures have been jailed within days as part of a monthslong crackdown on dissent that followed a disputed election last October in the South Caucasus country. Nearly all leaders of Georgia's pro-Western opposition are now behind bars, as protests continue against the ruling Georgian Dream party and its decision last year to halt Georgia's bid to join the European Union.
Washington Post
24-06-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
Georgia jails top opposition figures as authorities ramp up crackdown
TBILISI, Georgia — Georgia has jailed four key opposition figures within days as part of a monthslong crackdown on dissent that followed a disputed election last October in the South Caucasus country. Nearly all leaders of Georgia's pro-Western opposition are now behind bars, as protests continue against the ruling Georgian Dream party and its decision last year to halt Georgia's bid to join the European Union. The demonstrators, who gather daily in the capital, Tbilisi, also say that the vote on Oct. 26 that handed Georgian Dream another term in power was not free or fair.
Associated Press
24-06-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
Georgia jails top opposition figures as authorities ramp up crackdown
TBILISI, Georgia (AP) — Georgia has jailed four key opposition figures within days as part of a monthslong crackdown on dissent that followed a disputed election last October in the South Caucasus country. Nearly all leaders of Georgia's pro-Western opposition are now behind bars, as protests continue against the ruling Georgian Dream party and its decision last year to halt Georgia's bid to join the European Union. The demonstrators, who gather daily in the capital, Tbilisi, also say that the vote on Oct. 26 that handed Georgian Dream another term in power was not free or fair. On Tuesday, politician Giorgi Vashadze of the Strategy Agmashenebeli party was sentenced to eight months in prison for refusing to testify in an official probe that Georgian Dream's critics call an act of political revenge. The day before, three other opposition figures were handed comparable sentences after refusing to cooperate with the same parliamentary inquiry investigating alleged wrongdoings by the government of ex-President Mikhail Saakashvili. Badri Japaridze and Manuka Khazaradze were both jailed for eight months, while Zurab Japaridze received seven months. Opposition politicians have declined to attend the commission hearings, citing their ongoing boycott of parliament following the Oct. 26. election. Georgian Dream's critics say the vote was rigged with Russia's help to hand it another term in power. They also say the probe is a ploy by the ruling party to damage the opposition, particularly Saakashvili's United National Movement party. Speaking to The Associated Press before he was handcuffed on Tuesday, Vashadze said the commission hearings went 'against the Georgian constitution' because no opposition lawmakers are represented, and that the probe's aim is to persecute the opposition. 'They are afraid of us because we are fighting for our country, and they see that there is big support from Georgian society… That's why I'm under arrest now,' he said. Other prominent government critics remain in pre-trial detention for declining to appear before the commission investigating Saakashvili. They include Nika Melia, a former chairman of Saakashvili's United National Movement party, and Nika Gvaramia, who was a minister in Saakashvili's government. A former defense minister, Irakli Okruashvili, is also in custody. Melia, Gvaramia, and Zurab Japaridze were among the leaders of the opposition grouping, Coalition for Change, that finished second in the October vote, according to official results. Georgia's Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze on Monday denied that their arrests were politically motivated. Meanwhile, anti-government protests continue daily in central Tbilisi. While numbers are far lower than last autumn, the demonstrations are big enough to block traffic around the parliament building. Many protesters have worn masks since the government imposed harsh penalties for blocking streets. Elene Khoshtaria, another prominent opposition politician, on Tuesday slammed Georgian Dream for using 'violence, repressions, political persecution' to snuff out dissent and Georgia's 'European future.' She praised protesters for their persistence and called on Western countries to give stronger backing to Georgian Dream's critics. 'We are all in solidarity with all our friends and political prisoners,' she said, referring to those jailed or detained in recent weeks. 'As long as Georgia fights, I think our international partners should act in a very decisive and bold way.'
