Repression against opposition in Georgia is increasing: police use ‘mercenary agents’ to sow fear

On Monday evening, Gela Khasaia left his home for the protests when he was attacked from behind by three men. “We call such men Titushkijust like the mercenary agents were called in Ukraine during the Majdan Revolution,” says the 27-year-old Georgian activist at the back of a restaurant near the presidential palace in Tbilisi. During the government of former President Viktor Yanukovych, Titushki were used by Ukrainian security services to provoke pro-European demonstrators and attack them in the streets. Titushki pose as hooligans in sportswear. “And that’s how I got this,” he says, pointing with a black brace on his hand to a large scab on his cheek.

Khasaia is the social media manager of the opposition political party Girchi (More Freedom). This party is part of the Coalition for Change, a partnership of four pro-European liberal political parties in Georgia. “The next day I went to the office [van de partij] and there were the police. I filmed it for Facebook Live. Then they started swearing at me, and a masked officer ended up hitting me on the head.” The moment is captured on screen. On Wednesday, the police actually raided the office.

During that raid, Nika Gvaramia, leader of the Ahali party (also part of the Coalition for Change) and a key opposition figure, demanded that police show something proving they had a search warrant. Footage circulating on social media shows Gvaramia apparently being thrown unconscious into a detention car after an altercation with police.

“A few minutes after Gvaramia was taken away, I was arrested. They didn’t even say why, they just started cursing me again,” says Khasaia. He reported to officers that he had a headache, but did not receive medical attention until five hours later. He was also not allowed to call his lawyer. “I was sent home that same evening, but Gvaramia is in custody for twelve days.”

Postponement of EU negotiations

Since Thursday, November 28, evening protests against the ruling party, Georgian Dream, have been taking place in cities across Georgia. This was in response to Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze’s announcement that negotiations on accession to the European Union will be postponed until 2028. At the beginning of this week, repression intensified in the capital Tbilisi. Police raided several opposition offices. Journalists were injured by police violence, and opposition members and activists were arrested.

The police crackdown has sown fear among the opposition. It is difficult to find people who are willing to tell a foreign journalist about the actions of the authorities. Khasaia did not want to meet at his home for security reasons. Nevertheless, he appears fearless and above all combative. During the interview he receives messages on his phone almost non-stop. “I now try to coordinate things from home, for example if people need a lawyer. The doctor tells me to rest my head for five days, but I can’t wait to get back on the street.”

We will not stop protesting until new fair elections are declaredIrakli Phavlenishvili Secretary General of the United National Movement

The current protests have a long history. Since 2019, there has been dissatisfaction with the anti-European course taken by Georgian Dream, with large-scale protests in the years that followed. Nevertheless, the party always maintained its pursuit of EU membership, a wish of more than 80 percent of the people that is also enshrined in the constitution.

This year, the Georgian Dream broke with EU aspiration in an increasingly obvious manner. In the spring, the Foreign Agents Act was reintroduced – after being repealed in 2023 under pressure from protesters. The law is reminiscent of a Russian counterpart, which thwarts state criticism through strict financing supervision and hinders the work of NGOs and media. After the October parliamentary elections, which showed evidence of fraud by the ruling party, Georgians protested en masse.

And speaking of long histories: to understand Georgia, it is important to know that protesting against the regime is deeply rooted in the country’s history. Georgia lies not only between East and West, but also between North and South, and has experienced centuries of oppression by neighboring nations. Taking to the streets is one thing for Georgians way of life.

The demonstrations in Tblisi are sometimes brutal: demonstrators aimed fireworks at the police on Friday evening. According to the opposition, the police also use a lot of violence.

But these protests should not be seen as one of many, according to Marika Mikiashvili. She works at the Foreign Affairs department of Droa, also one of the parties that has joined the pro-European coalition. “We have a political responsibility as a coalition, but the demonstrations are not organized by us,” she says over Zoom. NRC. “The countermovement is coming from all corners: from the media, from the cultural sector, and calls are being made by individuals on Facebook.”

Lawsuits

The demonstrations will continue for a while, Mikiashvili thinks. “The government’s recent decisions have shown that they no longer even pretend to care about the people. They have misled us too often with so-called concessions, we will not accept it anymore.”

Irakli Phavlenishvili (30) is deputy secretary general of the opposition United National Movement, the party founded in 2001 by former president Mikheil Saakashvili. Phavlenishvili spent the entire day in court on Friday, where youth party members and activists were on trial. “They risk years in prison because of their participation in the protests,” he said during a demonstration at parliament on Friday evening. Meanwhile, Freedom Square is filling up with demonstrators waving Georgian and European flags. “Under this regime they will not be released. And so we will not stop protesting until new fair elections are declared.”

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