Georgian Parliament Speaker: “shameful” if anyone considers giving platform to ‘Freedom for Misha’ campaign as helping country

Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Sunday said it was “shameful” if anyone considered giving a platform to the ‘Freedom for Misha’ campaign as helping the country.

Papuashvili responded to the Festival of Democracy organised by the non-profit organisation Eastern European Centre for Multiparty Democracy in the city of Telavi in the country's eastern Kakheti region on Saturday, where the banners demanding the release of Mikheil Saakashvili, the imprisoned former President of Georgia, had been displayed.

We finally learned what European values mean to some people. It is shameful if anyone considers giving a platform to the ‘Freedom for Misha’ campaign as helping Georgia”, Parliament Speaker pointed out.

He also emphasised that all finally learned what European values meant for some people: “giving a platform to the campaign to free the architect of a system of torture and business racketeering from lawful punishment”, adding this had “nothing to do with Europe, of which Georgians are co-creators”.

The non-profit organisation EECMD organised a Festival of Democracy in Telavi with the participation of representatives of the domestic opposition, declaring the aim to inform citizens about their election programme.  

The same festival took place in the western municipality of Tsalenjikha last week.