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Braving bitter frost, protesters continue to rally daily in Tbilisi and cities across the Black Sea nation, in what has become an unprecedented protest movement against Georgian Dream’s perceived democratic backsliding and growing rapprochement with Moscow.
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The movement intensified after Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze’s November 28 announcement that his cabinet would not seek to open EU membership talks with Brussels until 2028 – a move that shocked many.
Georgia is an official candidate for membership in the 27-nation bloc, a bid supported by more than 80 percent of the population, according to opinion polls, and enshrined in the country’s constitution.
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During the protests’ initial phase, security forces used tear gas and water cannons to disperse demonstrators and made hundreds of arrests.
Georgia’s top human rights official, ombudsman Levan Ioseliani, and Amnesty International have accused police of “torturing” detainees – a charge the government denies.
Authorities have since resorted to harsh financial penalties and increased surveillance, deploying facial recognition technology to identify protesters and issue hefty fines.
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“After the bare violence proved ineffective, the government turned to intimidation – televised police raids on activists’ homes and anonymous threats over the phone,” Salome Khvadagiani, the director of Liberty Institute rights group [said].
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“When that too failed to suppress the protest, the government moved to slowly strangling them – financially,” she added.
In December, fines for blocking roads were increased tenfold, to 5,000 laris ($1,850), leaving thousands facing “absolutely disproportionate financial sanctions” or, alternatively, 15 days in prison.
In January alone, the total amount of fines surpassed $6.5 million in the country of four million people, where the average monthly salary is some $740, according to the For Georgia opposition party.
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To enforce these measures, authorities have expanded surveillance capabilities, including the deployment of facial recognition technology.
Rights groups said the government has drastically increased the number of high-resolution surveillance cameras in the streets of Tbilisi.
The widespread use of “facial recognition and remote biometric recognition technologies facilitates discriminatory targeted surveillance,” said GYLA rights watchdog. “These practices undermine fundamental rights.”
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But demonstrators are now “adapting to the situation” she said, filing court complaints that have overwhelmed the judicial system, “significantly delaying the enforcement of financial sanctions or even making them unenforceable.”
“The government can’t scare us,” said Khmaladze, who fought for nearly two years on Ukraine’s frontlines against invading Russian troops.
“We are taking to the streets for Georgia’s democracy and will never back down,” he said.