A court in Georgia on Thursday put in a pre-trial detention opposition party leader Zurab Japaridze on charges of failing to appear before the parliamentary inquiry amid anti-government protests.
Being one of the leaders of the Coalition for Change opposition party, which came in second in a parliamentary election in 2024, Japaridze had refused to appear at an inquiry into alleged crimes committed between 2004 and 2012 during ex-president Irakli Saakashavili’s tenure. Under Georgia's criminal code, failure to appear before a parliamentary inquiry can be punished by up to a year in prison. Many Georgian opposition figures have been accused of similar offenses.
Japaridze has also refused to pay bail after featuring prominently in street protests and had been held in contempt by parliament.
His lawyer Irakli Chomakhashvili described the court’s ruling on Thursday as a “politically motivated” decision and an attempt to stifle dissent. Ahead of the trial, Japaridze had slammed the "sham trial,” and accused the government of turning the country into dictatorship.
The arrest comes amid continued anti-government protests that demand new elections and the release of all political prisoners. Georgia’s capital Tbilisi has been the venue of large-scale protests since November 28, when Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze announced suspension of the country’s EU integration process until 2030. Apart from anti-government protests, the move also triggered strong criticism from Georgia’s western allies and worsened the relations between the Black Sea nation and the European Union.
