Elene Khoshtaria: They ran a metal detector over my bare body; there was explicit aggression and violence from the police - Now, they suddenly told me to leave and didn't even let me call my lawyer

"They ran a metal detector over my bare body; there was explicit aggression and violence from the police. Now, they suddenly told me to leave and didn't even let me call my lawyer," said one of the leaders of the "Coalition for Change," Elene Khoshtaria, on "Nodar Meladze’s Saturday" after being released from the temporary detention facility.

As Khoshtaria noted, "It was cynical violence."

"Just as they did not explain anything to me during my arrest, they did not explain anything when they released me either. However, this is not surprising, given how many illegal detainees we have, how much mistreatment and torture there is—it really does not surprise me. They suddenly told me to leave, didn’t let me call my lawyer, and I left alone.

I don’t want this to be about me personally. Of course, I am fine, I responded appropriately, and I am doing very well. But I considered it necessary to speak about this because it is a vicious, horrible, inhumane phenomenon. I can only imagine the fear of those who do not have the opportunity to speak on television. I am experienced; this is nothing new to me. Who do they think they will intimidate in these walls? This is the police, who directly resorted to violence—physically and verbally—against both men and women at the Kakheti Highway police station. They touched my face, my teeth...

Nino Chkhartishvili and Davit Bolotashvili were there. They told me they needed to search me. I told them they could check my pockets, but I would not cooperate with them. After that, they bent my arms back and tied them. I had a vape, and when they forcefully took it, there was violence on my face and teeth—cynical violence. Every second, I was thinking about those who cannot speak up about such treatment.

Then, inside [the detention facility], they conducted a shameful and humiliating procedure. They restrained me, tied both my hands behind my back, two people held me down, and a third stripped me. When I entered [the facility], I had high blood pressure and vomiting episodes... They didn’t let me use the bathroom, and exactly during this time, this violent episode occurred. Two police officers—Nino Chkhartishvili and another officer—held me down, while a third stripped me.

They ran a metal detector over my bare body. There was explicit aggression and violence from them. I am fine, I responded well—they know that too—but our citizens must be protected from such police officers. We must expose them, which is why I am mentioning names. I can recognize all of them; I spent quite a long time there, and they were very cynical. I asked for their names, and I only know two: Nino Chkhartishvili was involved both in the violent episode at the police station and in the stripping episode here [at the detention facility]. She was personally called in for it, and we had to wait an hour and a half for her arrival. Davit Bolotashvili was not as aggressive, but he assisted Nino and could not restrain himself from aggression."

Regarding the statement by the Ministry of Internal Affairs that a possibly illegal substance was found on Elene Khoshtaria during her arrest and is undergoing forensic examination, Khoshtaria called this information "ridiculous."

"When my information was released, they felt the need to say something. I take a lot of prescribed medication, which is necessary for me. I had some pills with me—one of the tablets, I don’t know exactly which one, was probably lying around. I am not interested in what they say, which is why I refused to go to court today. I categorically refused to attend. I do not cooperate with this system, nor do I care about their examination. I had no illegal substances, and I never will. These are prescribed medications," Khoshtaria said after her release.

The opposition politician believes that everything that happened to her was an act of retaliation.

"One reason is revenge—they are irritated by the protests, by the fact that people are not backing down. The second reason is that this is a system that lacks public support, so it uses violence as a tool to intimidate others. That is why it is important to speak out publicly and talk to our international partners."

When asked whether she plans to take legal action against the police officers, Khoshtaria responded: "Not in Georgia. There is no legal space in Georgia... So, I will not pursue legal action here. But I guarantee that these people will be held accountable."

"I have no personal vendetta, but this system—where people abuse and overpower detainees in a locked room because they cannot control them on the streets—must be punished," Khoshtaria said in an interview with TV Pirveli after leaving the temporary detention facility.