UNM: there will be ‘no provocations’ if Saakashvili is transferred to private clinic

The opposition United National Movement (UNM) MPs Khatia Dekanoidze and Tina Bokuchava have met with Parliamentary Speaker Kakha Kuchava, asserting that if imprisoned former president Mikheil Saakashvili is transferred to a private clinic, the UNM will be responsible for not holding rallies nearby.

Following the meeting held earlier today, Bokuchava said the parliamentary speaker can play an ‘important role’ in overcoming the ‘political crisis.’

We take responsibility that there will be no provocations, no rallies, near the civil medical centre. Our main goal in this case is to save Saakashvili’s life, Dekanoidze added.

• European Court rejects Saakashvili’s complaint on his transfer to a private clinic

Saakashvili was arrested in Tbilisi on October 1 after a clandestine return from eight years in political exile. He considers himself a ‘political prisoner’ and claims to be on a hunger strike.

The former president, who was serving his sentence in Rustavi Prison No.12, was transferred to Gldani prison hospital on November 8 to ‘prevent deterioration in his health due to increased risks,' the penitentiary service reported.

In a letter released from prison hospital, Saakashvili claimed that the purpose of his transfer was his physical destruction under Russian president Vladimir Putin’s order.