Georgia: Opposition protest planned in Tblisi December 6

Event

The opposition United National Movement (UNM) party is scheduled to hold a protest in the vicinity of the  Rustaveli metro station in Tblisi on Wednesday, December 6. Participants will reportedly gather at 14:00 (local time), and it is unclear when the rally is expected to end. Anticipate an increased security presence in the vicinity of the protest, along with associated transportation delays.

Context

The UNM is protesting criminal charges brought against its leader in exile, former President Mikhail Saakashvili, by prosecutors in Ukraine.  Saakashvili is accused of taking funds from organized crime groups to fund opposition political protests in Ukraine. On December 5, police arrested Saakashivili in Kyiv, but he was freed following clashes between supporters and police. The attempted arrest has sparked ongoing protests in Kyiv.

Saakashvili has been living outside of Georgia since 2012. In May 2015, he was appointed Governor of Odessa, Ukraine, and granted Ukrainian citizenship. The Georgian government stripped Saakashvili of his Georgian citizenship in December 2015 on the grounds that he had become a Ukrainian national. However, the UNM believes that Saakashvili's citizenship was revoked to prevent him from running in Georgia's 2016 parliamentary election.

Advice

Individuals in Tbilisi are advised to monitor developments to the situation and avoid all demonstrations; even peaceful protests can turn violent with little to no warning.​