Ombudswoman urges opposition to ensure strict observance of rules, coronavirus restrictions during protests
Georgian Public Defender Nino Lomjaria has urged the government to ensure effective implementation of all rules and restrictions related to coronavirus. Photo: Public Defender’s press office.
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Georgian Public Defender Nino Lomjaria has urged opposition parties to ensure strict observance of all recommendations, rules and restrictions during their election protests imposed to prevent the further spread of coronavirus.
Opposition parties have taken to the street following the October 31 parliamentary elections.
They say that the elections were rigged and are demanding repeat elections.
- Ex-President Saakashvili urges people to join opposition rally in Tbilisi: coronavirus not deadly, losing the state is deadly
- Georgian Dream executive secretary names ex-president Saakashvili behind ‘revolutionary scenario’
Lomjaria says that daily cases of coronavirus are surging in Georgia and hospitals are already overloaded.
We have been talking about the acute challenges in the Georgian health care system for years. Along with infrastructural problems, the country has always had the problem of lack of qualified medical personnel, which may become a serious barrier in the current crisis management process, especially given the frequent and increasing cases of infection of medical personnel,” Lomjaria said.
Lomjaria urged the government to ensure effective implementation of all preventive measures in order to slow the rate of the Covid-19 infection in the country.
Opposition parties say that they will take to the street anyway. Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge.
She also appealed to the country’s Central Election Commission to consider complaints relating to the results of the elections and recount the results of the disputed polling stations in a timely manner, under fair and transparent procedures, ‘which will significantly reduce the ongoing tense protests outside the election administrations and the mobility of the population’.
Lomjaria urged the public to act in line with coronavirus recommendations.
Opposition parties have plans to hold a large rally on November 8.
They say that if the government imposes restrictions for the date, they will not obey them.
The ruling Georgian Dream party Executive Secretary Irakli Kobakhidze was questioned at the State Security Service of Georgia over his recent statements concerning the ‘revolutionary scenario’ which he had claimed the opposition was planning to develop amid the parliamentary elections.
The Central Election Commission (CEC) reports that 11 district election commissions (DECs) have corrected results from the October 31 parliamentary elections, annulled data of three portable ballot boxes and corrected results in nine cases.
Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia, who tested positive for coronavirus earlier this week, has stated that the country needs to broaden the scale of local coronavirus restrictions to make the measure more effective amid election-related street protests.Gakharia said earlier today in an online conference that the opposition demonstrations are expected to cause a sharp increase in new cases of coronavirus.
Former President of Georgia, Ukrainian citizen Mikheil Saakashvili, has urged people to join the opposition rally on November 8 in Tbilisi despite the recent surge in coronavirus cases.
An opposition motorcade in Tbilisi has taken to the capital’s streets urging the public to attend the opposition rally on November 8 in central Tbilisi and ‘protect their votes.’
Police officers have detained one individual who shot several times from his vehicle while driving through the tunnel located near the business center of Bidzina Ivanishvili.
The State Security Service of Georgia has launched an investigation into the conspiracy intended to overthrow the state power. The investigation was launched on October 1 based on ‘operative information’ claiming that ‘certain people were planning to violently overthrow the government’ if the results of October 31 parliamentary elections would not be beneficial for them.
Head of the Task Force operating under the Interagency Coordination Council Aleksandre Khojevanishvili announced at a briefing today that the number of total confirmed cases of COVID-19 has increased to 54,852, while the number of total recoveries has reached 39,773.
Starting November 9, a curfew will go into effect in the Georgian capital of Tbilisi, Kutaisi, Batumi, Rustavi, Zugdidi, Gori and Poti between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. amid an uptick in coronavirus cases. Vice Prime Minister Maia Tskitishvili announced at a news briefing earlier today that the interagency coordination council has made a decision based on the epidemiological situation in the country and the increased cases of infection.
Georgian Public Defender Nino Lomjaria condemns the illegal acquisition and release of audio recordings allegedly involving Georgian opposition politicians, which were published by Ukrainian media outlet Obozrevatel on November 6.
Opposition politicians and their supporters have gathered in front of the parliament of Georgia on Rustaveli Avenue, demanding repeat parliamentary elections be held. Claiming that the Central Election Commission (CEC) has falsified the results in favour of the ruling Georgian Dream party, opposition politicians are calling on the public to ‘protect their vote’.