Protesters Erected Barricades In The Center Of Tbilisi

29.11.2024, 8:28
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There were clashes with the security forces.

On November 28, people came to a rally in the Georgian capital Tbilisi after Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze announced his refusal to join the EU until 2028. The protesters said that such actions jeopardise the future of the country. The security forces began to disperse the protesters, using tear gas and water cannons.

The Echo of the Caucasus reported that the protest was organized through social media.

The protesters gathered near the central office of the ruling Georgian Dream party and the parliament building in Tbilisi. They claim that Prime Minister Kobakhidze's decision betrays the country's interests and violates Article 78 of the Georgian Constitution, which enshrines the desire for European integration.

In parallel with the rally, Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili held emergency consultations with the diplomatic corps and the opposition, after which she made a statement. Her words are quoted by SOVA.news.

Zurabishvili said that the authorities declared war on their people with such actions.

"The non-existent, illegitimate government proclaimed not peace, but war to its own people, its own past and its own future. On this path there is no Georgian statehood, no independence, no future without Russia," Zurabishvili stated.

She also noted that during her emergency meetings with Western diplomats, she called for helping Georgian society, and the main task is to appoint and hold new parliamentary elections.

The President also appealed to the Georgian opposition and called on it to unite for coordinated action.

Meanwhile, the situation worsened at the rally in Tbilisi. The authorities pulled special forces to the place of the rally. Clashes between police and protesters began.

President of Georgia Salomi Zurabishvili went to Freedom Square, where special forces are stationed. She spoke to the enforcers.

"Do you serve Russia or Georgia?" the president asked the special forces.

Subsequently, the protesters began to move towards the special forces. Among them were women and children.

Special forces began to use smoke bombs, tear gas and water cannons against people.

The security forces pulled down to the main part of the action along Shota Rustaveli Avenue and began to disperse people.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia stated that the protest "went beyond the boundaries established by law, so special means were used." And in public they publish a video on the detention of demonstrators by the police.