Rasa Juknevičienė: The brutality of the Georgian Dream regime continues to escalate – the European Union and its member states must impose sanctions on Bidzina Ivanishvili and his associates immediately

The brutality of the “Georgian Dream” regime continues to escalate, and the European Union and its member states must impose sanctions on Bidzina Ivanishvili and his associates immediately. This is what MEP Rasa Juknevičienė wrote on her X page.

“The brutality of the ‘Georgian Dream’ regime continues to escalate. Red lines were crossed long ago, but what happened today is beyond excessive.

Zurab Japaridze, the leader of one of the opposition parties, has been arrested.

The European Union and its member states must impose sanctions on Bidzina Ivanishvili and his friends immediately,” Juknevičienė wrote.

Zurab “Girchi” Japaridze, a member of the “Coalition for Change,” had his bail of 20,000 GEL replaced with pre-trial detention. The decision was made by Judge Irakli Shvangiradze of the Tbilisi City Court, satisfying the prosecution's request. Japaridze was handcuffed in the courtroom.

The case concerns an investigation and charges related to failure to comply with a lawful demand of the temporary investigative commission of the Georgian Parliament. Japaridze did not appear before the commission, after which he was summoned to testify before a magistrate judge and was officially charged. The Tbilisi City Court initially imposed a 20,000 GEL bail as a preventive measure.

For reference, the investigation is being conducted under Article 349 of the Criminal Code, which concerns “failure to comply with the demand of the temporary investigative commission of the Parliament of Georgia.” The offense is punishable by a fine or up to one year of imprisonment, and/or restriction from holding office or engaging in professional activity for up to three years.