Police prevent opposition activists from rallying in Ivanishvili’s village

Georgian law enforcers have stopped the opposition activities who had plans to hold a rally in front of the house of the founder of the Georgian Dream ruling party, Bidzina Ivanishvili, in the village of Chorvila, Sachkhere region of western Georgia earlier today.

The opposition supporters gathered near the village to later demand the release of former president Mikheil Saakashvili from prison, who was arrested in Tbilisi on October 1, after eight years in political exile. 

Police say that they had stopped the activists to prevent a confrontation between locals and the opposition activists. 

Saakashvili, who has been on hunger strike since his detention, says that he returned to Georgia to help his United National Movement party replace the ‘pro-Russian Georgian Dream government.’ 

He was convicted in Georgia in absentia for abuse of authority back in 2018 and was sentenced to six years in prison. 

Saakashvili has been charged with four other offences as of today.