TBILISI, November 7 – Georgia’s opposition leaders and their lawyers pushed back Friday after prosecutors opened criminal proceedings against eight opposition figures, including former president Mikheil Saakashvili, on counts ranging from “sabotage” to aiding a foreign power’s hostile activity. The Prosecutor General’s Office has also asked a Tbilisi court to set bail for Lelo party … Read more
TBILISI, September 18 – One of Georgia’s most high-profile opposition figures, Elene Khoshtaria, has been ordered to pay 5,000 lari (about USD 1,800) in bail following her arrest for defacing a ruling party election banner. A judge in Tbilisi set the bail on Monday, but Khoshtaria, one of the leading figures of the opposition Coalition … Read more
TBILISI, September 16 – Georgia’s prime minister is escalating attacks on jailed opposition activist Elene Khoshtaria, accusing her of being in the Kremlin’s pay. Speaking Tuesday after the Dutch ambassador visited Khoshtaria in detention, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze blasted the envoy for “grossly violating” the Vienna Convention and claimed the meeting was interference in Georgia’s … Read more
TBILISI, September 16 – Despite international criticism, Georgia’s government is signaling a tougher stance on street protests, with Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze warning that the era of going “soft” on demonstrators is over. The PM’s remarks came after the arrest of Elene Khoshtaria, a leader of the opposition group Coalition for Change, who was detained … Read more
TBILISI, September 15 – Elene Khoshtaria, one of the leaders of Georgia’s opposition group Coalition for Change, was taken to a temporary detention facility in the Tbilisi district of Zahesi, local media reported. Earlier this morning, police detained Khoshtaria outside her home and took her to a police station. Supporters from her party later gathered … Read more
TBILISI, September 15 – Tensions in Georgia’s capital flared this weekend after police detained a prominent opposition leader over an act of vandalism targeting the ruling party’s mayoral campaign. Elene Khoshtaria, one of the leaders of the opposition Coalition for Change, was taken into custody outside her home, according to local media. Authorities said her … Read more
TBILISI, September 15 – Giga Bokeria, leader of the small opposition party Federalists, blasted the detention of Elena Khoshtaria, the head of the opposition group Droa. Bokeria described the move as “another shameless example of double standards” by what he called the “unconstitutional regime of Bidzina Ivanishvili,” the billionaire founder of the ruling Georgian Dream … Read more
TBILISI, August 4 – Georgia’s Revenue Service has launched an investigation after media reports that Germany’s ambassador in Tbilisi, Peter Fischer, is renting a Tbilisi apartment owned by the family of Mamuka Khazaradze, leader of the opposition Lelo party. Initial analysis reportedly revealed a possible violation of tax law, prompting formal tax-control measures to examine whether … Read more
TBILISI, DFWatch–With just a few months left until Georgia’s local elections on October 4, the country’s opposition remains deeply divided. Some parties are preparing to boycott the vote, while others intend to participate, hoping to secure victory in the capital and other opposition strongholds. Efforts to unite the opposition, including a brief hunger strike by … Read more
TBILISI, DFWatch–Several high-profile Georgian journalists, activists and opposition politicians have been summoned to court for allegedly insulting public officials online. TV anchors Vakho Sanaia and Vika Bukia, opposition figure Elene Khoshtaria and activist Ana Subeliani are among those who have faced court hearings. Specifically. this deals with Facebook posts considered offensive to ruling party MP … Read more