Ex-Pres Saakashvili urges Georgians to treat 4 October rally as ‘last chance’ to save country

Former president Mikheil Saakashvili has urged the public to gather on Rustaveli Avenue on 4 October, calling the event “our country’s last chance” to prevent what he described as a slide into authoritarianism.

 In a social‑media post on Thursday, he warned that, after the demonstration, “the last free TV channels will be closed,” universities will be targeted and large‑scale arrests could follow unless people act. 

Saakashvili framed the rally as decisive, saying moments come in a country’s history when immediate action was required and urging the citizens to “come on the 4th and stand to the very end. Freedom — now or never.” He compared the moment to past protests and argued that delaying the struggle risked “long‑term suppression of independent media and civic institutions”.