The Public Defender calls on the Ministry of Internal Affairs to stop dispersing the gathering, detaining participants and using special means, and to allow the protest participants to continue their demonstration. The Ombudsman issued a statement to this effect.

As Levan Ioseliani notes, there was no legal basis for dispersing the protest participants.

“The Public Defender refers to the ongoing demonstration on Rustaveli Avenue and notes that at the time (00:34), when law enforcement agencies began dispersing the demonstration, the demonstration was peaceful and there was no legal basis for its dispersal and interference with the freedom of assembly. The Public Defender calls on the Ministry of Internal Affairs to stop dispersing the gathering, detaining participants and using special means, and to allow the protest participants to continue their demonstration,” the Public Defender’s statement states.