TBILISI, September 6 – Two of Georgia’s best-known opposition figures, Mamuka Khazaradze and Badri Japaridze, walked free on Friday, after being pardoned by President Mikheil Kavelashvili. Both men are leading figures in the Lelo party, and had been serving prison sentences since June for defying a parliamentary investigation into the country’s turbulent political past. Their … Read more
TBILISI, August 31 – Irakli Kupradze, a candidate for mayor of Tbilisi, has been meeting residents in the city’s Samgori and Varketili districts. His campaign team, backed by two pro-EU opposition parties, said he was out meeting people in order to listen directly to their everyday problems. Kupradze pledged that, if elected, addressing these local … Read more
TBILISI, August 18 – Two Georgian opposition parties, Lelo and For Georgia, have named Irakli Kupradze as their joint candidate for Tbilisi mayor in the October 4 local elections. Giorgi Sharashidze was presented as candidate for chairman of the City Council, while Aleko Elisashvili and Tata Khvedeliani were put forward as deputy mayoral candidates. The … Read more
The response from European and American politicians and organizations to the Mzia Amaghlobeli case—centered on a media owner and journalist who slapped a police chief—appears to be part of a broader effort to pressure the Georgian Dream government, which many in the West increasingly view as authoritarian and aligned with Russian interests, writes Sopo Japaridze. … Read more
TBILISI, August 6 – An opposition party in Georgia says its bank account has been seized, in what it claims is political retaliation linked to the scandal surrounding Germany’s ambassador. Lelo party secretary general Irakli Kupradze said the National Bureau of Enforcement, under the Ministry of Justice, had notified the party of the freeze. He … Read more
TBILISI, August 3 – Georgia’s ruling party leaders have accused Germany’s ambassador of violating diplomatic protocol by living in a property owned by the family of an opposition politician. Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze and Vice Speaker of Parliament Gia Volski have both validated claims in local media that the ambassador’s residence is an informal rental … Read more
TBILISI, July 31 – Two of the opposition’s figureheads are in Washington D.C. to lobby for the U.S. Congress introducing sanctions against Georgia to force the country to adhere to democratic standards. Strong Georgia – Lelo’s leaders, Salome Samadashvili and Grigol Gegelia, travelled to Washington D.C. to meet Republican Congressman Dan Crenshaw. According to the … Read more
TBILISI, DFWatch–A fatal building collapse in central Tbilisi earlier this month has intensified debate over housing safety and city governance, just months before Georgia’s local elections in October. The opposition party Lelo for Georgia staged a protest on Thursday, spotlighting what it calls the city’s widespread neglect of deteriorating residential buildings. Standing in front of … Read more
TBILISI, DFWatch–Tensions are escalating within Georgia’s opposition as two parties declared they will participate in the upcoming local elections on October 4. The decision by the parties For Georgia, led by former Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia, and Lelo – Strong Georgia have have triggered resignations, internal divisions, and fierce criticism from opposition groups that have … Read more
TBILISI, DFWatch–Tensions are escalating within Georgia’s opposition as two parties declared they will participate in the upcoming local elections on October 4. The decision by the parties For Georgia, led by former Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia, and Lelo – Strong Georgia have have triggered resignations, internal divisions, and fierce criticism from opposition groups that have … Read more