Public Defender: burning EU flag is “impediment” to Georgia’s European integration, “insult” of people’s “historic choice”

Public Defender of Georgia, Levan Ioseliani, on Tuesday said taking down and burning the European Union flag had been not only an “impediment” to Georgia’s European path, but also an “insult” of Georgian people’s “historic choice”.

Ioseliani was commenting on the incident, which saw members and activists of the Conservative Movement political party of the Georgian right-wing media outlet Alt-Info taking down the flag from a pole in front of the Parliament building in Tbilisi earlier today, while making pronouncements against the country’s European integration aspirations.

• Interior Ministry launches administrative proceedings after far-right activists burn Parliament building’s EU flag [VIDEO]

The Public Defender stressed all constitutional bodies had to take “all measures within their powers” to ensure Georgia’s full integration in the EU and the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation - a western course chosen by the Georgian people and the country’s constitution, the local news agency Interpressnews said.

Any group of people” has a right of free assembly and expression, but “within the limits of the law”, he highlighted and noted the gathering “must be peaceful, not lead to violence and must not contradict the country’s constitutional principles”.

Photo via Parliament of Georgia

After the incident, the patrol police officers raised the EU flag back at the legislative body, and the Interior Ministry announced it had launched administrative proceedings on the violation.