“The President pardoned two criminals—if they want to lock themselves up and not come out, no one is forcing them,” said Kakha Kaladze, General Secretary of “Georgian Dream” and Tbilisi Mayor, regarding the pardon of the leaders of “Lelo – Strong Georgia.”

According to him, Mikheil Kavelashvili’s decision is a humanitarian act.

“The decision made by the President is a humanitarian act. He pardoned two criminals. In general, I don’t take pleasure in anyone being sent to prison—why would anyone rejoice in someone’s imprisonment? But I think there should be more respect for state institutions.

What does it mean to [pardon] against their will?! If they want to lock themselves up and not come out, no one is forcing them. The President has the authority to make such a decision. The President explained the purpose. He made the decision and released the leaders of the political parties participating in the elections. It’s very simple,” Kaladze stated.

For reference, Mikheil Qavelashvili pardoned the leaders of the “Strong Georgia – Lelo” party, Mamuka Khazaradze and Badri Japaridze. As stated in Kavelashvili’s announcement, “Despite various circumstances, the President made this decision to ensure that no one has even the slightest pretext to claim that the local self-government elections are being held under conditions of limited competitiveness.”