Memory of Ukrainian children killed in war honoured outside parliament building in Tbilisi

A symbolic demonstration outside the Georgian Parliament in Tbilisi honoured the memory of children killed in the ongoing war in Ukraine on Wednesday.

Organisers of the action - five current and former reporters from Georgia - placed 145 shoes in front of the building in reference to the number of children who have become casualties in the conflict so far.

The most painful and emotional for us is the fact that today there are 145 children killed. […] When the rally was planned a few days ago, there were 115 children killed by Russian attacks in Ukraine, but we saw every day how the information about the dead children was changing, so we [had to keep] adding the shoes,” Tiko Peikrishvili, one of the organisers of the initiative, said.

In her comments on the performance and the ongoing Russian aggression against Ukraine, another organiser Irma Nadirashvili said “this sad view [of the shoes outside the Parliament] shows Putin kills, and that he is a very dangerous person.”

Georgia is a country that has experienced Putin’s aggression. We [Georgians] know how hard it is when Russian tanks are seen across the country. I know how important it is to support friends at such a difficult time, so I want Ukrainian people to see this performance as the Georgian support for them,” Nadirashvili told Formula TV.

The group of organisers for the performance also included reporters Tamar Ghvinianidze, Eka Kadagishvili and Maka Pankvelashvili.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has killed 145 children and injured over 200 since it was launched last month.