Will gov’t fulfill demands of protesters against construction of Namakhvani HPP? Deadline expiring today
Local demonstrators say that a full-fledged dialogue with the authorities will begin only after these three demands. Photo: Tata Kachkachisgvili/Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
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The government of Georgia will announce today whether it will meet some of the demands of locals protesting the construction of the Namakhvani HPP in the Rioni Gorge of western Georgia.
The local organisers of the rally met government representatives in western Georgian city of Kutaisi on April 15 and put forward their demands.
The demands included:
- The removal of the iron wall in the village of Gumati which prevents the demonstrators’ movement to the village of Namakhvani
- The suspension of preparatory works for the construction of the HPP by the Turkish company ENKA
- Allowing the demonstrators to open tents for peaceful protests in the village of Namakhvani again
Local demonstrators say that a full-fledged dialogue with the authorities will begin only after these three demands are met and if the government does not fulfill the conditions, large rallies will be held not only in Rioni gorge and Kutaisi, but all over Georgia.
Locals have been protesting for almost five months now against the planned construction of a 433-megawatt Namakhvani HPP in the Rioni Gorge.
Crowds protesting the construction of Namakhvani HPP in the Rioni Gorge have moved from the village of Gumati to Kutaisi city earlier today, where they are holding a rally now.
Georgian law enforcers have erected an iron wall in the Rioni River Gorge in western Georgia, in the village of Gumati earlier today to hamper the movement of demonstrators to the village of Namakhvani. Locals have been protesting the construction of Namakhvani HPP by the Turkish company ENKA for 170 days on.
Locals who have been protesting the construction of Namakhvani HPP for 168 days by Turkish company ENKA are now holding a rally in the village of Gumati, Imereti region after police dismantled their tents in the village of Namakhvani yesterday ‘due to possible threats of flooding.’
Demonstrators who have been protesting the construction of the Namakhvani HPP in the Rioni Gorge of western Georgia for more than 170 days are ready for a ‘constructive dialogue’ with the Georgian government. The local organisers of the rally met government representatives in Kutaisi yesterday and put forward their demands. Ruling party MP Sozar Subari, who attended the meeting, said that one of the key reasons for the protests was a lack of communication.
Georgian Economy Minister Natia Turnava has announced that the construction of the Namakhvani HPP in western Georgia, in particular the dam, will be suspended for the next 12 months.