The UNM criticised what it described as the government’s “repressive actions,” including the recent transfer of former president Mikheil Saakashvili from a medical facility back to prison
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Front News Georgia
Georgia’s opposition party, the United National Movement (UNM), has called on supporters to gather for a protest march in Tbilisi on 28 November, accusing the government of undermining the country’s democratic institutions and its path towards the European Union.
In a statement on Friday, the party urged “all patriots of Georgia” to assemble at 19:00 near Tbilisi State University before marching toward the parliament building on Rustaveli Avenue. The UNM said the demonstration was intended to “make the voice of a free, European Georgia heard by the civilized world.”
The party criticised what it described as the government’s “repressive actions,” including the recent transfer of former president Mikheil Saakashvili from a medical facility back to prison. Saakashvili, who is in his fifth year of imprisonment, has long argued that his prosecution is politically motivated - a claim the government denies.
According to the UNM, the developments of 28 November 2024 - when the party and allied groups held a mass rally - marked a turning point in public resistance to what it labeled the ruling party’s “Russian-inspired policies.” It further accused the government of violating the constitution, abandoning European integration efforts, and attempting to instill “fear and hopelessness” through the detention of political opponents and pressure on civil society.
The ruling Georgian Dream party has repeatedly rejected such allegations, insisting that its policies remain aligned with the country’s strategic goal of EU membership and that legal actions against opposition figures were based on criminal investigations rather than politics.
In its statement, the UNM pledged to continue its campaign “for Georgia’s European future,” saying it would stand together with other opposition parties, civic groups and supporters. The party framed the upcoming march as a continuation of what it called the public’s “historic struggle” for sovereignty, democracy and European integration.
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