Ruling party to support suspension of UNM leader Nika Melia’s MP immunity
The ruling Georgian Dream party members gathered yesterday to discuss a number of issues including the suspension of MP immunity for opposition leader Nika Melia. Photo: Georgian Dream/Facebook
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The ruling Georgian Dream party will support the suspension of the MP immunity for opposition United National Movement party chair Nika Melia as he has refused to pay the bail.
The Chief Prosecutor’s Office asked parliament to suspend MP status for Melia to then request his arrest from the court on Friday.
- Prosecutor’s Office requests parliament dismiss UNM chair, MP Melia to allow arrest
- UNM opposition chair may be arrested for refusal to pay bail
Ruling party member Mamuka Mdinaradze said following the ruling party meeting yesterday that the UNM and its leader are ‘deliberately provoking’ the judiciary, the state and the public trust to the state institutions.
Saying that Melia either should apologise to the public and state and pay the bail or go to prison, Mdinaradze said the opposition leader now has time and opportunity to respect his country's legislation and make 'a legally right' decision.
The UNM says its leader will not pay the bail 'in the face of threats of his imprisonment'. Photo: Nika Melia/Facebook
Melia is charged with incitement to violence during the June protests in Tbilisi back in 2019 and was released on 30,000 GEL bail.
However, he violated the conditions of bail by publicly removing his surveillance bracelet and 40,000 GEL was added to his bail in November 2020.
- Court sets bail at 70k GEL for opposition MP Nika Melia
- Parliament gives consent to detention of opposition MP Melia
Melia has refused to pay the 40,000 GEL bail (in 50 days) and on February 5, 2021 the Chief Prosecutor’s Office warned him of changing the bail into detention.
The UNM has tweeted earlier today that Melia 'is not going to succumb to blackmail and repressions against the opposition executed by the institutions that serve as an instrument of political persecution under oligarchy rule'.
The Georgian Chief Prosecutor’s Office has asked parliament to suspend MP status for the new chair of the United National Movement (UNM) opposition party Nika Melia to then request his arrest from the court.
The new chair of the United National Movement (UNM) opposition party Nika Melia may be sent to pretrial detention for refusing to pay 40,000 GEL bail, the Georgian Chief Prosecutor’s Office said earlier today.
Nika Melia will be the next chair of the United National Movement (UNM) based on the results of the opposition party polls. The UNM launched an online poll on December 21 following Grigol Vashadze’s resignation.
EU Ambassador to Georgia Carl Hartzell fears that the possible arrest of opposition MP and the head of the United National Movement opposition party Nika Melia will further deepen the Georgian political crisis and create additional barriers between the ruling party and the opposition to achieve an election agreement.
Tbilisi City Court has ruled that United National Movement chair Nika Melia be remanded into custody for failure to post bail, per the request of the country’s Prosecutor’s Office. Meanwhile, the United States Embassy to Georgia calls on the authorities and the opposition 'to exercise maximum restraint in the wake of tonight’s ruling'.
The Georgian Ministry of Internal Affairs has announced that they have postponed the detention of opposition MP and the head of the United National Movement Nika Melia following the recent resignation of Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia.
Opposition MP and the head of the United National Movement (UNM) opposition party Nika Melia, who was named the reason for PM Giorgi Gakharia recent resignation, has stated that the opposition ‘welcomes’ the PM’s decision, but it is not sufficient.
The ruling Georgian Dream party has confirmed a disagreement with recently resigned PM Giorgi Gakharia over the arrest of opposition leader Nika Melia.