Opposition demands talks with president on ‘large-scale, political amnesty’
Saakashvili considers himself a political prisoner and is currently undergoing treatment at Gori military hospital after 50-days of hunger strike which he ended on November 19 as a result of his transfer to the hospital. Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge.
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The Opposition United National Movement (UNM) party is demanding a meeting with Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili stating that she ‘has a historic chance to end the crisis in the country’ by pardoning ex-president Mikheil Saakshvili who is serving a sentence for abuse of power.
Supporters of the ex-president and members of the UNM, who are holding a rally near the residence of the president of Georgia, demand a face-to-face conversation with Zurabishvili.
Saakashvili has stated earlier today that Georgia needs ‘universal political amnesty,’ adding that the redistribution of power is also required.
He also underlined that he has no desire to hold a high position in the government, noting that a ‘whole new generation of leaders must come.’
The ex-president called for a'national reconciliation’ and for making peace between the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party and the UNM several days ago. Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge.
The head of the GD Irakli Kobakhidze responded to Saakashvili’s statement saying that he sees no sign of ‘remorse and repentance [in Saakashvili’s statement] which is the basis of reconciliation.’
Ruling party MP and Vice Parliament Speaker Gia Volski said that the majority of people in Georgia ‘do not welcome the release of Saakashvili in the format of reconciliation.’
The plan of the UNM is destabilisation and revolution. Talking about any reconciliation in this situation is flattery,” Volski said.
At the rally near the presidential residence, opposition leader Gigi Ugulava said that the best way to free the ex-president would be an amnesty, noting that ‘the agreement on the amnesty should be adopted by the parliament of Georgia.’
President Zurabishvili stated soon after the ex-president’s arrest on October 1 and on November 3 that she will not pardon Saakashvili, emphasising that her position regarding the issue is ‘unchanged and unwavering.’
Saakashvili considers himself a political prisoner and is currently undergoing treatment at Gori military hospital after 50-days of hunger strike which he ended on November 19 as a result of his transfer to the hospital.
Saakashvili served as the country’s third president from 2004 to 2013 and was sentenced to six years imprisonment in two cases in absentia in 2018, along with several other offences, including illegal seizure of property, embezzlement, illegal rally dispersal, and illegal border crossing.
The Special Penitentiary Service of Georgia has dismissed allegations by former president Mikheil Saakashvili that he is being denied the right to visitation and that his TV set has been confiscated.Saakashvili is currently undergoing treatment in Gori military hospital after ending a 50-day hunger strike. He was arrested in Tbilisi on October 1 after returning to Georgia from eight years in political exile.
Georgia’s State Inspector’s Office, which studies alleged offences committed by law enforcement agencies and officers, has fined the country’s Justice Ministry and the Special Penitentiary Service 2,000 GEL for the release of videos of former president Mikheil Saakashvili in prison.
Georgia's former president Mikheil Saakashvili says that ‘national reconciliation,’ referring to making peace between the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party and his United National Movement, ‘is the best outcome for everyone.’
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili has reiterated her previous claims that she will not pardon arrested ex-president Mikheil Saakashvili. She said Saakashvili, who was arrested a day before the October 2 municipal elections in Tbilisi ‘does not satisfy any criteria of a political prisoner or of a victim of innocence’.
The third president of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili, who was detained on October 1 based on several criminal charges, won’t be able to attend the court tomorrow, December 9 for health reasons. Saakashvili wrote on Facebook earlier today that the only reason he ‘definitely wanted to come was to encourage and support people who had suffered for months’ because of him.