The former Minister of Defense was explaining to Judge Romeo Tkeshelashvili why, in his view, the overthrow of the government is not a crime.

“Mr. Romeo [the judge], I will respond to your effective entrance into the courtroom. In court, you are the main one. I was speaking, I was addressing the judge, there were two prosecutors there, the process ended, someone later found something in the State Security Service and ‘discovered’ that this was a criminal offense, and charges were brought against me.

I take this matter absolutely seriously when I said I don’t know whether I plead guilty or not. I have no idea why this should be considered a criminal offense and why I am a criminal because of my words. I consider the overthrow of this government the only way out of the current situation in the country. By law, the overthrow of government is not defined as a crime. It is not fixed as a criminal offense in our legislation. Society agrees on norms of behavior, and only after that does it gain the force of law.

I said this government must be overthrown; people have this right given to them by nature. There is no situation that can restrict a person’s natural rights. The question is who considers it a dictatorship and who does not. If we consider it a dictatorship, then overthrow is a legitimate right.

Mr. Romeo, after the Soviet occupation, when Orjonikidze, Filip Makharadze and others were overthrown, did they have the right to do so? Of course they did, but unfortunately they lost.

I believe this is a dictatorship. We are living in an unclear situation; everyone understands it is a dictatorship. If you speak to anyone in depth, they will all tell you: ‘this man will not leave like that.’ That is the situation.

Bidzina Ivanishvili himself knows better than I do that removing him from power means his overthrow.

There is a widespread fear in Georgian society that war with Russia will follow. If you look closely, you will see that no one is expecting tanks to roll in tomorrow...

People only have observation as a way to solve problems. If we observe carefully where we live, society will understand that we are living in absurdity - people are arrested for standing on a sidewalk, for Facebook posts people can be detained. If society observes carefully, it will realize that it cannot change this through elections, and then it will reach a single conclusion: overthrow is the solution. If you believe the government is violating human will, the only solution is overthrow.

Mr. Judge, as you are listening to me now - well, of course you are listening because this concerns you - but so were the prosecutor and the previous judge...

Today I am not a politician, I have no political ambitions, so I speak much more openly. Politicians say elections are the only way, but the result is the same: if Ivanishvili loses elections today, he will be in prison tomorrow. Taking power away from him in any form means going to prison. We will say many truths once this government changes, and Ivanishvili knows it.

I don’t understand whether this is a crime or the behavior of a conscientious citizen. I am not calling on anyone to do anything; I do not consider myself someone who should call others to action - I am simply stating my position.”

He also told the judge to assess whether this constitutes a crime, adding that he already has a “second 9-year sentence,” so it does not matter much to him whether another 3 years are added.

The judge responded to Akhalaia’s opening remarks, where he commented on the judge’s “effective entrance”:

“You mentioned an effective entrance. According to the procedural code, everyone is required to stand when the court enters the room; it is basic etiquette, and apparently some people lack that,” Judge Tkeshelashvili said.

Akhalaia is charged under Article 317 of the Criminal Code, which covers public calls for the violent overthrow of Georgia’s constitutional order and government. The charge carries a penalty of up to three years in prison.