TBILISI, May 25 – Georgia’s Independence Day is turning into a political standoff, with the government preparing official celebrations and the opposition planning a protest march that may end in a clash over whether a stage can be set up near parliament.
The opposition says it will gather at 7pm on Tuesday, May 26, outside the first building of Tbilisi State University, then march toward Rustaveli Avenue and parliament.
Organizers say the rally will be peaceful. But they also say they will still try to bring in equipment, install a stage and set up screens, even though Tbilisi City Hall has refused permission for such structures near parliament or on roadways.
Nika Gvaramia, one of the leaders of the Coalition for Change, said the protest is based on constitutional rights and called on the authorities to avoid any incident.
“At 19:00, we gather at the first building of the university, then march to Rustaveli,” Gvaramia said. He added that organizers would keep trying to bring in equipment and set up a stage and screens for a full rally.
The city says the refusal is about traffic and public order. Because of official Independence Day events, Tbilisi’s traffic routes have been changed, and City Hall says temporary structures near parliament would create further complications.
The Interior Ministry also says the organizers’ notice did not meet legal requirements. According to the ministry, the application did not include the purpose of the rally, its end time, the expected number of participants, or the form of emergency medical support.
The timing is sensitive. Georgia marks May 26 as the day its first republic declared independence in 1918. This year, the government’s official program includes an oath-taking ceremony by military conscripts on Freedom Square, events in Tbilisi and 12 regions, and a gala concert at 8pm near the presidential palace on Atoneli Street.
At 5:10pm, the exact time when independence was declared in 1918, the national anthem will be performed in the yard of the Atoneli residence and at other locations across the country.
The opposition march could bring protesters toward parliament around the same evening period as official events take place only a few hundred meters away.
Zurab Japaridze, leader of Girchi-More Freedom, said the rally would go ahead in any case.
“Anyhow, this rally will be held, anyhow people will gather, anyhow there will be a march,” he said.
Opposition figures say the authorities are trying to set a trap. Giorgi Vashadze, leader of Strategy Aghmashenebeli, said the opposition must avoid giving Georgian Dream a chance to artificially raise tensions. He said the issue should be handled “in a statesmanlike way” because May 26 is Independence Day and a day of unity.
Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze rejected the claim that the protest itself is being banned. He said everyone can hold an assembly, but placing equipment on Rustaveli Avenue is difficult because of Independence Day events.
“As for holding a gathering, everyone can do that in our country,” Kobakhidze said. He added that the opposition would once again show its “helpless face” on May 26.
Other Georgian Dream officials went further. First Vice Speaker Gia Volski accused the opposition of deliberately violating the rules for advance notice, and said they want a peaceful rally to become a confrontation with the state.
Irakli Kadagishvili, chair of parliament’s self-government committee, said the opposition can gather and speak, but should set up a stage somewhere else if it wants one. He accused organizers of aiming for a provocation so that any detention could become a talking point abroad.
