“As time goes by, I’m increasingly hearing that if I apologize, they’ll let me go, and this applies to the others too. It’s very hard to find a polite response to this, but woe to your wretched master who demands this!” said actor Andro Chichinadze, who was detained during protest rallies, at a court hearing.

According to him, he has no intention of requesting a pardon or apologizing, as the charges brought against him and his fellow detainees are fabricated.

“First of all, I ask [the judge] to let me finish; it won’t take long, and I won’t return to this topic…

We live in a time when information is a more powerful and significant weapon than weapons themselves. As time passes, I’m increasingly hearing, and there’s a desire, that if I apologize, they’ll let me go, and this applies to the others too. In reality, the issue is this: it’s very hard to find a polite response to this, but woe to your wretched master who demands this! They can offer this apology and pardon to the police officers who were running around on Rustaveli [Avenue]…

I don’t want anyone to be punished or arrested. As for the charges, they are fabricated. If we analyzed the videos presented by the prosecution individually, no crime would be established, so they invented the notion of group [violence], which has only led them further into a dead end.

If I had harmed anyone, I certainly wouldn’t be talking this much.

I don’t deny verbal insults or the actions shown [in the videos]—it’s clear that those actions did not pose a threat to anyone’s health.

Once again, I think it’s important that we verify any information received in today’s world because, just as religion can grant or take away freedom, so can information. Information can still be verified,” Andro Chichinadze stated.

It is noteworthy that other defendants share Andro Chichinadze’s position. As they noted, they see no need or necessity to apologize or request a pardon, as the charges against them do not establish any crime.

For reference, during the protest rallies near the Parliament, 11 individuals were detained on charges of participating in group violence.

The detainees—Andro Chichinadze, Onise Tskhadadze, Jano Archaia, Ruslan Sivakov, Luka Jabua, Guram Mirtskhalava, Valeri Tetrashvili, Giorgi Terishvili, Irakli Kerashvili, Revaz Kinadze, and Sergei Kukharchuk—were charged under Article 225, Part 2 of the Georgian Criminal Code, which pertains to participation in group violence.

This offense carries a penalty of 4 to 6 years of imprisonment.