On the 158th day of anti-government protests in Georgia, groups of protesters marched through the eastern suburbs of Tbilisi, demanding the resignation of the government and the release of detained demonstrators.
Participants of the march, dubbed the ‘March of Unity’, initially gathered near the Isani metro station on Sunday and then walked to the Ministry of Internal Affairs in the district. They carried photos of those detained during the protests, as well as portraits of high-ranking Georgian police officials involved in suppressing the protests.
Some people showed their support for the protesters by hanging Georgian flags from their windows and balconies.
‘The illegitimate, self-proclaimed government does not represent the will of the people and must go! […] We are not afraid! We will not stop! We will not surrender! This is a fight for freedom’, declared the activist groups who organised the rally.
At the end of the march, the demonstrators entered the nearby Varketili metro station and took the train to the central Rustaveli Avenue, the site of everyday protests, where the Georgian Parliament is located. They continued chanting slogans inside the metro.
While the ongoing protest movement is primarily centered in downtown Tbilisi, activists occasionally organise marches in the city’s other districts as well. One such event took place on 26 April, the 150th day of protests, when protesters marched through the Didube district, from a nearby metro station to the Tbilisi Prosecutor’s Office.
The current wave of protests first broke out spontaneously on the evening of 28 November, just hours after Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze announced the government’s EU U-turn.
Police responded to the protests with violence, including what appeared to be repeated and deliberate attacks on journalists.
Protesters detained during the protests have reported being systematically robbed and beaten by police, with testimony from several detainees revealing episodes of extreme violence and intimidation.
According to local media, more than 50 criminal cases have been launched against protesters on various charges.
Mikheil Gvadzabia
