Opposition Blocking Two Key Roads in Tbilisi

Opposition leaders and activists blocked the capital city’s two key roads on both banks of Mtkvari (Kura) River in protest against, what the opposition said was, “an illegal seizure” of cars belonging to its activists and supporters.

The blocking of the traffic lasted for over an hour. There were several cases of verbal argument between some opposition activists, including Davit Gamkrelidze, leader of New Rights Party, part of Alliance for Georgia, and several citizens, who were complaining about inconveniences created by the opposition’s march, which blocked the roads. 

“We apologies for incontinences, but it was not our decision, it was a response to the illegal actions of the authorities,” Nino Burjanadze, leader of Democratic Movement-United Georgia, told journalists at the picketing.

On May 20 opposition leaders said that cars of dozens of its supporters and activists were seized by the police and transferred to penalty parking lot. Davit Gamkrelidze, leader of New Rights Party, part of Alliance for Georgia, said that two of his cars were also seized. TV pictures showed Gamkrelidze in a brief and minor brawl with the police as he tried to resist them taking away one of the cars. 

The Interior Ministry denied any political motives behind the move and said in a statement on the same day that owners of cars were fined because of their involvement “in blocking the traffic movement on main roads of Tbilisi organized by the opposition” on May 19. “They managed to block the main road leading to Tbilisi Airport and have hindered fluent transportation of ordinary citizens, thus violated the articles 120 and 125 envisaged by Administrative Code of Georgia,” the Interior Ministry statement said. 

Opposition activists held a rally outside the newly built building of Interior Ministry in the suburb of Tbilisi and blocked key highway linking Tbilisi with eastern Georgia for about 40 minutes.

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