EU ambassador: arrest of opposition leader Melia likely to deepen Georgia’s political crisis
EU Ambassador to Georgia Carl Hartzell is facilitating election talks between the ruling party and the opposition. Photo: Carl Hartzell’s Twitter page.
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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.
Parliament suspended the MP status of Melia yesterday and allowed the country’s Chief Prosecutor’s Office to demand Melia’s arrest from the court because Melia has not posted bail for his release in a case that dates back to the June 2019 protests.
Melia, along with 50 other opposition MPs, is demanding repeat parliamentary elections and has refused to take up his mandate in the 10th convocation of the Georgian parliament in protest.
However, the parliament did not vote for the suspension of MP status for opposition MPs earlier this month.
The ruling party and the opposition have held four meetings with the mediation of Hartzell and other foreign ambassadors to solve the political crisis.
Hartzell says that the possible arrest of Melia ‘is likely to further postpone the date of the fifth round of election talks between the ruling party and the opposition.’
Melia says that he will not pay the bail. Photo: Nika Melia's Facebook page.
He has urged parties ‘to make statements and take steps to prevent the further complication of the situation.’
Hartzell stated that ‘distrust in the court system and high polarisation is a dangerous trajectory for Georgian democracy.’
The UNM opposition says that Hartzell’s statement was ‘very strong.’
The ruling Georgian Dream party says that ‘everyone is equal to the law and Melia must not be an exception.’
- Melia is charged with incitement to violence during the June protests in Tbilisi back in 2019 which were sparked by the presence of Russian MPs in the Georgian parliament.
- He was released on 30,000 GEL bail on June 27, 2020.
- However, Melia violated the conditions of his bail by publicly removing his surveillance bracelet and 40,000 GEL was added to his bail in November 2020.
- Melia has refused to pay the 40,000 GEL bail (within 50 days of sentencing) and on February 5, 2021 the Georgian Chief Prosecutor’s Office warned him on February 5, 2021 of the possibility of his bail conditions being reversed to detention.
The Prosecutor’s Office appealed to the court for Melia’s arrest yesterday.
The court will discuss the issue later today.
The Georgian Parliament has suspended opposition MP and the new chair of the United National Movement (UNM) opposition party Nika Melia earlier today per the request of the Prosecutor’s Office.
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.
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.
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'.
Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia has announced his resignation earlier today, saying that the step is connected with the upcoming arrest of the opposition MP, the head of the United National Movement opposition party Nika Melia. Gakharia has stated that Melia violated the law and has been engaged in sparking tension in the country.
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.
The ruling Georgian Dream party has confirmed a disagreement with recently resigned PM Giorgi Gakharia over the arrest of opposition leader Nika Melia.
Police have detained 20 individuals including United National Movement opposition party members Levan Khabeishvili and Giorgi Kapanadze while they were trying to set up tents in front of the parliament building.
The Georgian Chief Prosecutor’s Office has stated earlier today that if the head of the United National Movement (UNM) opposition party Nika Melia posts bail, they will request his release from Tbilisi City Court.