The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia reported that 48 people were detained during the crackdown on the protest on Rustaveli Avenue on the night from Friday to Saturday. About this informs “Exo Caucasus”.
According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the detainees were accused of “petty hooliganism” and “disobedience to the police” in accordance with the Administrative Code. Beka Korshia, a journalist of the opposition TV channel “Mtavari”, was among those arrested, who was arrested after the crackdown, when he was walking through one of the nearby streets.
Coalition for Change deputy Tsotna Koberidze was also detained, but he was soon released citing immunity as a deputy. Koberidze himself stated that during the detention he was beaten and insulted, but the police treated him adequately after arriving at the station. Former Minister of Economy Zurab Alavidze and his son were also among those detained.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs explained the use of force by the aggressive behavior of the protesters, who fired fireworks and threw stones at the police. At the same time, the ombudsman of Georgia emphasized that the demonstration remained peaceful before the start of the crackdown, and there were no grounds for interfering with the right to freedom of assembly.
