Activists in Tbilisi held placards outside the parliament building.
Participants in the daily meeting on Rustaveli Avenue held a mass picket near the parliament building on the 440th day of continuous protests, holding posters dedicated to the demonstrators arrested for protesting on the sidewalk.
As reported by the "Caucasian Knot," on February 9, on the 439th day of continuous protests, participants in the meeting on Rustaveli Avenue expressed satisfaction with the government's abandonment of plans to merge the country's two largest universities.
According to amendments to the Law "On Assemblies and Manifestations" adopted by the Georgian Parliament, restrictions previously imposed on holding rallies on roads apply to sidewalks and pedestrian streets as well. To hold a march, you must submit a notification to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and violating the requirements is punishable by arrest. Repeated violations, such as blocking the sidewalk near a government building, will result in criminal prosecution.
Pro-European protesters in Tbilisi, who gathered today outside the Georgian Parliament building on Rustaveli Avenue, held a protest against the arrest of citizens for "standing on the sidewalk." More than ten activists lined up with posters demonstrating against the persecution of demonstrators following the tightening of the law on demonstrations, Publika reports.
The protesters held posters reading, "Standing on the sidewalk is punishable - corruption is not," "Transferring natural resources without warning is allowed, but a fair protest is not," "Prison for standing on the sidewalk, a medal for torturing the people. If protest doesn't exist, why are you banning it?", "You won't find justice in an unfair court," "Terms of imprisonment for standing on the sidewalk, bail for stealing money from the budget," "If everything is so good, why is everything so bad?", "Standing on the sidewalk is punishable, selling out the homeland is not," "Standing on the sidewalk is punishable - poisoning the people is not," "Standing on the sidewalk is punishable - destroying the education system is not."
The protests on Rustaveli Avenue have been continuing daily for 440 days now. Today, several participants in the pro-European protests were summoned to court by phone in connection with reports drawn up for blocking the sidewalk. Police already in February, during Saturday marches. "They are accused of blocking the road when Rustaveli was packed with people," Tbilisi Life notes.
Today, the court also sentenced Giorgi Bulia to two days of arrest, accused by police of obstructing the movement of people near the parliament on December 17.
Protesters in Georgia have been demanding new parliamentary elections and the release of political prisoners since November 28, 2024. Security forces carried out violent dispersals of the protests, using tear gas and water cannons, and detained protesters. Over 1,000 people were subjected to administrative prosecution during the protests. The "Caucasian Knot" has prepared a report "The Main Thing About the Persecution of Protesters in Georgia".