Police use water cannons to disperse rally at parliament
Special unit forces are trying to force demonstrators leave parliament territory. Photo: Reuters
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The Georgian Interior Ministry has used water cannon to disperse the rally in front of parliament in Tbilisi after demonstrators refused to leave the territory and allow MPs in the legislative body.
The demonstrators, who are protesting the rejection of an election bill, refused to leave the area within 30 minutes, in the time given to them by the Interior Ministry.
Water cannons were used after several-time warnings to demonstrators to leave the territory, as according to the Interior Ministry protesters violated the law on assembly and manifestation through blocking the entrances of parliament starting yesterday.
Before the usage of the water cannons officials of Tbilisi City Hall also urged demonstrators to leave the territory and stop hampering the parliament’s work.
Demonstrators with their hands up when special unit forces started to take the territory. Photo: IPN.
The ruling party has refused to discuss any new initiatives regarding the electoral system, responding to the ongoing protests in Tbilisi demanding a fully proportional electoral system from 2020.
Secretary General of the ruling party, Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze has stated after a party meeting earlier today that the 2020 parliamentary elections will be held with a mixed-electoral system, as parliament rejected the ruling party proposed bill on the move to the fully proportional elections last Thursday.
He stated that the “United National Movement opposition and its branches” stand behind current protests in Tbilisi as “the parties have no public support and wish unrest to somehow return to power.”
The ruling party accepted the conduct of 2020 parliamentary elections on a fully proportional system amid the June public protests in Tbilisi, as it was one of the three demands of demonstrators to stop rallies.
The ruling party proposed bill on holding 2020 parliamentary elections per a fully proportional voting system and a zero per cent entry threshold was scrapped last week as only 101 MPs voted for it instead of mandatory 113 in the 150-member parliament [40 ruling party MPs did not vote for the bill].
Police have given 30 minutes to demonstrators to allow MPs in as the protesters have blocked all entrances of the legislative body starting yesterday, protesting the rejection of the ruling Georgian Dream party proposed election bill on the move to a fully proportional electoral system, the Georgian Public Broadcaster reports.
The Georgian Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) has called on demonstrators demanding a fully proportional vote for the 2020 elections to stop blocking access to the parliament building. The ministry says that such actions are illegal, and that if the freedom of expression goes beyond the limits set by law, the police will respond appropriately.
The leader of the European Georgia opposition party Giga Bokeria has stated that he is surprised by the response of the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party to current protests in Tbilisi, as the ruling party accused the opposition of staging provocations and stirring unrest.
Participants of a protest rally at Rustaveli Avenue in downtown Tbilisi have blocked the entrances of the parliament of Georgia with tents.
Police have reportedly detained about 10 people during the dispersal of a rally in front of the parliament building in Tbilisi earlier today. Radio Liberty reports the alleged detention of the leader of Girchi party Zurab Japaridze, member of the United National Movement opposition party Otar Siradze, activists Giga Maqarashvili and Zuka Berdzenishvili, lawyer Beka Basilaia and several others.
Law enforcers have opened all three entrances of the Georgian parliament to MPs after the dispersal of a rally in central Tbilisi with the use of water cannon. IPN news agency reports that MPs are starting to gather in the parliament building and the ruling Georgian Dream party has plans to hold a meeting which should have been conducted earlier today.
The Georgian Interior Ministry has reported that 18 individuals have been detained during the dispersal of a rally at parliament earlier today for hooliganism and disobedience to police. The Georgian media has reported the detention “of about 10,” while the official number is 18. The ministry said that the work of the Georgian parliament has been restored and the central Rustaveli Avenue will reopen to traffic in the coming hours.
Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia has responded to the rally dispersal on Monday and stated that police acted in full line with the law “as irresponsible politicians” made demonstrators violate the law and hamper the work of the legislative body.Gakharia stated that the freedom of expression and assembly is “fully protected in the country” and the government uses force only when demonstrators violate the law.
A ruling Georgian Dream (GD) majoritarian MP Dimitri Khundadze has offered the country to switch to a fully majoritarian electoral system amid protests in Tbilisi which were sparked by the rejection of the GD-proposed bill on the transition to a fully proportional electoral system from 2020.
“All against one” is the slogan under which the opposition will start marching on Rustaveli Street in Kutaisi and finish with a rally at Kutaisi City Hall on December 6.
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has accepted cases of Geogian social activists Giga Makarashvili, Zuka Berdzenishvili and Irakli Kacharava who were detained during the November 18 rally dispersal in Tbilisi.
The European Court of Human Rights on Wednesday ruled that the Georgian authorities had shown “a degree of tolerance” towards participants of the demonstration dispersed in November 2019 outside the parliament building in capital Tbilisi.