Attempted coup will receive strict legal response, Kaladze

Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze on Thursday said that “despite multiple warnings” from the state, certain individuals had attempted a coup d’état on October 4, and that the government would respond firmly within the bounds of the law.

“A very serious event occurred - for months, a campaign was underway aiming at a coup and overthrowing the government, and specific individuals and groups tried to carry it out. This will not pass easily. They may have different opinions, but no one will be spared from prison. We warned our citizens not to take illegal steps, yet they did. This is their choice. The state will respond very strictly, within the framework of the law,” Kaladze said.

Regarding alleged foreign encouragement of the protest participants, the mayor said this was not surprising, claiming that extremism and societal division were often funded from abroad.

“We should not be surprised, because all the problems in the country come with their involvement. Hundreds of millions were spent to create an agent network in Georgia. NGOs funded from abroad employed people who effectively formed a long-term network capable of destabilizing any government. We exposed this, presented real information to the public, and today these actors are angry at the Georgian people because the voters said ‘no’ in parliamentary and local elections. The people clearly distinguish between patriots and enemies. Some foreign diplomats even encouraged violence and supported extremist organizations. This is the reality,” the mayor said.