“By launching criminal prosecution against Giorgi Gakharia regarding the case of defending Georgian land, Georgian Dream is betraying Georgia’s national interests and causing irreparable damage to our country’s territorial integrity and sovereignty. How do you expect to explain to the population that, supposedly, we have ‘lost’ these lands six years ago and you knew nothing about it?” — stated For Georgia MP Giorgi Sharashidze during his speech at the plenary session of Parliament.

According to him, it was due to Giorgi Gakharia’s brave and principled decision that Georgian land was preserved on territory controlled by Georgia — through the establishment of a police checkpoint.

“If the leadership of Georgia itself recognizes the placement of this checkpoint as a mistake, then the only correct and logical decision would be to remove this checkpoint from South Ossetia!” — these are the words of Igor Kochiev, head of the delegation of the Tskhinvali de facto puppet Russian regime. And you know very well what Kochiev means by South Ossetia — nothing more, nothing less than the village of Chorchana in the Khashuri municipality. Yes, Kochiev’s statement confirms that after Ivanishvili’s apology, Georgian Dream — by launching criminal prosecution against Giorgi Gakharia over the defense of Georgian land — is betraying Georgia’s national interests and inflicting irreparable damage on our country’s territorial integrity and sovereignty. How do you explain the fact that the so-called ‘prosecutor’s office’ of the occupation regime and the Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia have the exact same claim against Giorgi Gakharia?! The truth is that Giorgi Gakharia stopped the creeping occupation by peaceful and legal means through establishing the police checkpoint, and by doing so ensured that the state preserved control over our land.”

“I want to tell you: every false witness who testified against Giorgi Gakharia will be held responsible for the fact that today the Tskhinvali puppet regime is declaring the village of Chorchana in the Khashuri municipality part of South Ossetia, when it demands the removal of the checkpoint from Georgian soil — from the ancestral Georgian territory which Giorgi Gakharia defended peacefully, while you recognize it as ‘lost’ when you say that we supposedly lost this land. And if this land is really lost, then why is the Tskhinvali puppet regime unable to remove the checkpoint from what it claims is its own territory?”

“If anyone may actually lose this land, it is those false witnesses — those who publicly declared Georgian land ‘lost’ through false testimonies and statements, handing the occupier a legal argument to assert claims over Georgian lands! Those false testimonies are now being used by the occupier not against Giorgi Gakharia, but against Georgia!”

“You know very well that in reality, it was precisely thanks to Giorgi Gakharia’s bold and principled decision that we managed to retain Georgian land by placing a police checkpoint on the territory controlled by Georgia. And most importantly — we preserved Georgian land peacefully! We protected our citizens in a way that did not lead to any military escalation or confrontation. What do you say to the Georgian people who are rightfully disturbed by the occupier’s claim that Chorchana is supposedly South Ossetian territory and that the checkpoint established by the Georgian side must be removed from so-called South Ossetian land?! How do you intend to explain to the Georgian population that, supposedly, this land has been lost for six years and you knew nothing about it? If you didn’t know, then the state security system and national security are completely collapsed — and if you did know and kept silent until you decided to initiate politically motivated justice against Gakharia, that is an even greater crime!”

“And how did you manage — after all of this — to support Giorgi Gakharia twice for the post of Prime Minister? The first time, did the ‘deep state’ order you — and the second time, who ordered you? Do you expect anyone to believe the absurd claim that no one was informed of the decision to establish the checkpoint?! That supposedly Gakharia carried the checkpoint on his back and secretly placed it alone in the Chorchana forest at night. Everyone involved in this dirty and fabricated case will face a very heavy fate when they will have to answer before a fair court why they gave testimonies against Georgia’s territorial integrity and the interests of the Georgian state,” — said Sharashidze.