The Daily Beat: 6 February
On the 71st day of the protests, demonstrators managed to block Rustaveli Avenue despite police resistance. A police cordon tried to stop them, but the protesters eventually managed to take control of the avenue. Citizens from different sectors continue to gather daily in defiance, maintaining their unwavering demands: a rerun of new elections and the release of those detained during the demonstrations. For more updates, tap our live blog: Resistance.
GD Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze accused the U.S. Embassy, USAID, NED, and EED, as well as their local recipient civil society organizations (CSOs) of “coordinated work against the Georgian people and state.” “In Georgia, the [U.S.] Embassy and USAID, just like the NED and other institutions, acted in a coordinated manner against the Georgian people and the Georgian state,” GD Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze told journalists in Kazakhstan.
The GD parliament hastily adopted the repressive legislative amendments in the third reading. The amendments tighten the rules on assemblies and demonstrations, increasing administrative and criminal liability. The amendments significantly increase the fines for administrative offenses such as petty hooliganism, which were previously punishable by 500 to 1,000 GEL or up to 15 days’ imprisonment.
The Georgian Dream parliament has voted to appoint four new members to the National Bank Board, filling vacant seats. The four candidates – Vakhtang Burkiashvili, Otar Shamugia, Nino Jeladze, and Levan Dzneladze – were nominated by GD President Mikheil Kavelashvili. The nominations were approved by a majority vote in the GD parliament, according to the official press release.
The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) issued an annual report suggesting that since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, transnational drug organizations have been using new drug trafficking routes across Georgia to transport opioids and synthetic drugs from Europe to Turkey, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The report also says that Georgia remains a critical hub in the global drug trade.
On February 6, TI-Georgia released a detailed report addressing the GD government’s initiated set of repressive legislative changes, stating that they pose a direct threat to fundamental freedoms, including of assembly and expression. TI-Georgia describes these amendments as “dictatorial regulations” aimed at suppressing ongoing pro-EU protests and instilling fear among the public.