Thousands of pro-EU demonstrators gathered on Wednesday in Tbilisi in Georgia for a seventh night of protests against the government, which increased pressure on the movement by notably arresting Nika Gvaramia, one of the leaders of the opposition.
Many of the participants came equipped with diving goggles or surgical masks to protect themselves from the tear gas used extensively by the police the previous evenings, but the crowd appeared thinner compared to the massive gatherings of last week, although the affluence remained significant for this country of around 4 million inhabitants. Nikoloz Bakouradzé, a 19-year-old student, thinks the movement has “already passed its peak”. “Today, like yesterday, there are fewer people,” said the young man, while judging that “the energy remains the same.”
The authorities increased their pressure on the movement by searching the offices of the opposition Droa party on Wednesday. Hooded police officers brutalized then took away Nika Gvaramia, the leader of another allied party, Akhali, according to images from the independent media Pirveli.
The Interior Ministry also reported the arrest of seven people accused of “organizing” violence during the demonstrations. They face up to nine years in prison. He confirmed that he had carried out searches in the offices of several political parties and claimed that a “large number of pyrotechnic devices” and Molotov cocktails had been seized.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze has, for the moment, adopted a hard line, threatening the opposition and refusing any concessions. On Wednesday, he promised again to crack down on “radical opposition” and NGOs who, he said, are organizing “violent actions” and trying to destabilize the country. “No one will escape their responsibilities,” he warned.
