Protest rally held demanding release of Georgian citizen illegally arrested by occupation forces

Locals in Georgia’s eastern town of Gori have held a rally demanding the release of Georgian citizen Mamuka Chkhikvadze, who was detained by the Russian occupation forces near the village of Zemo Nikozi in Gori municipality on December 12, 2021.

• Occupation forces illegally arrest Georgian citizen in Gori municipality

Rally members have urged Georgian authorities to take more effective steps to secure the release of Mamuka Chkhikvadze.

I’m very sorry that our fellow citizens in Georgia are treated like this. We have no information about our friend. The government should do everything possible to prevent Georgian citizens from being arrested illegally”, said Mamuka Chkhikvadze’s friend Giorgi Jamureli.

The illegal arrest of Georgian citizens is a common issue near the occupation line. Usually, those arrested are released once their families pay a fine.

Russia declared the independence of Georgia’s occupied Abkhazia and Tskhinvali (South Ossetia) region on August 26, 2008, following the Russia-Georgia war.

However, only four other countries – Venezuela, Nicaragua, Nauru and Syria – share Russia’s position regarding the occupied Georgian territories’ status, while the whole international community states that the regions are occupied by Russia.