“I don’t want to go to prison either; prison is very dangerous. But fear must be defeated within yourself because Georgia’s fate is being decided today. Open your ears! Wake up a little! Have courage and stand up, instead of just shouting about ‘unity’ on television. You are already united - every day the situation becomes heavier,” said the accused politician Levan Khabeishvili at the court hearing, addressing opposition politicians.

He also addressed the public:

“Every day is critical for our homeland. Three months ago, you could go out and protest, post on Facebook, but today that is not possible. Now, if you want to stand on the sidewalk, you must apply to the authorities five days in advance. This is not a game! Soon they will come to your home. About 300 political prisoners exist today for loving their country.

How do you sleep at night? Do you go home at night and drink a cappuccino?

We are foolishly arguing about unity. What is needed is action - and you are afraid to act. There is no other explanation. I am saying this as a supporter, not as someone lying in ambush. As long as fear exists between us and Ivanishvili, we will be defeated by fear.

In 2008, if Anjanelidze had said, ‘I’ll spit on the flag and go home,’ what kind of fight would that have been? They come to your home, to your home! You can’t even stand on the sidewalks; they harass our mothers and children.

GDD used chemical weapons - the whole world talks about this. In Zimbabwe, President Mnangagwa passed a law in 2003 declaring anyone who spoke to a foreigner an enemy. Does this remind anyone of Zimbabwe’s President Mnangagwa? Our dictator is similar to that Zimbabwean… You cannot win unless you defeat fear within yourself.

I don’t want to go to prison either; prison is very dangerous. But fear must be defeated within yourself because Georgia’s fate is being decided today! Open your ears! Wake up a little! Have courage and stand up instead of just shouting about unity on television! You are already united - every day the situation becomes heavier,” Khabeishvili said.

For context, Levan Khabeishvili is accused of offering a bribe to an official to commit an unlawful act and of publicly calling for the overthrow of state power.

Khabeishvili faces charges under Article 339, Part 2 of the Criminal Code of Georgia, concerning the promise of a bribe to an official to perform or refrain from performing actions in favor of the bribe-giver, and under Article 317 of the Criminal Code, which covers publicly calling for the overthrow of state power.