Georgian opposition blocks Tbilisi center with demand to release political prisoners

Today, a number leading opposition organizations and NGOs of Georgia blocked the traffic along part of Rustaveli avenue for half-an-hour and then traffic on the adjoining Freedom Square in Tbilisi for an hour. In this way, the opposition demanded the release of all political prisoners.

Yekaterina Beseliya, leader of the movement "Solidarity with illegal prisoners", acquainted the participants of the action with the address to Konstantin Kublashvili, chairman of the Georgian Supreme Court, and Zurab Adeishvili, Minister of Justice. In this address, the opposition members state their demands, among which: to unconditionally release all political prisoners and drop all politically motivated cases; to review the points of law in all cases of illegally detained persons; to announce a general amnesty, particularly for under-aged and women.

"We have applied with our demands to Kublashvili and Adeishvili because they are responsible for such decisions. In March, out movement started registering political prisoners, during this period we have received more than 200 complaints. Our lawyers are going to consider all of them", said Yekaterina Beseliya in her talk with the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

Part of the opposition leaders took the address from the action of protest to the meetings with Konstantin Kublashvili and Zurab Adeishvili. However, no meetings took place, and the opposition representatives officially handed over their addresses to the departments.

"If our demands have not been met by May 6 we shall hold a wide-scale action of protest. Our struggle will continue till the last political prisoner has been released in the country", said Beseliya.