Public Defender: Detained opposition Droa party leader refuses to meet with representative of his office
The Public Defender said the representatives of his office were involved in the process and visited the detainees. "We are doing everything within the law to protect the rights of the detained individuals”, Ioseliani stressed. Photo via Parliament of Georgia
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Georgian Public Defender Levan Ioseliani on Sunday said the leader of the Droa opposition party, Elene Khoshtaria, who had been detained for administrative offences on Saturday, refused to meet with the representative of the Public Defender’s office.
Khoshtaria was detained during a protest outside Kvareli Lake Resort in Georgia's east, which followed the information spread on Friday alleging that the sanctioned daughter of Russian official Lavrov and her husband were staying in Kvareli Lake Resort and the hotel would be hosting the wedding party of Lavrov’s family members.
Along with the Droa leader, Georgian police arrested 16 individuals at the rally yesterday, which saw physical confrontations between law enforcement and protesters.
In her social media post, Khoshtaria said she would not attend the court hearing, stressing she and her lawyers would not cooperate with “the slavish court”.
The Public Defender said the representatives of his office were involved in the process and visited the detainees. "We are doing everything within the law to protect the rights of the detained individuals”, Ioseliani stressed.
Georgian Police arrested 16 individuals for administrative offences during a protest outside Kvareli Lake Resort in Georgia's east, the local media outlet Interpressnews said on Saturday.
Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili on Saturday said the wedding of Russian citizens would not take place in Georgia, noting the family had already left the country.
Georgian Police have arrested six individuals protesting the landing of the first jet of a Russian airline at Tbilisi International Airport on Friday since the Kremlin’s move last week to resume direct flights and lift visa restrictions with Georgia.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili on Friday pledged “not a single" airline or aircraft sanctioned for Russia's invasion of Ukraine would be allowed to operate in Georgia following the resumption of direct flights between the countries this week.
Irakli Kobakhidze, the Chair of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Sunday said imposing sanctions on family members of politicians was inconsistent with human rights standards, citing that as a legal state, Georgia could only sanction individuals who had “directly” committed criminal acts.