Several non-governmental organizations released a joint statement on the court trial of Nika Melia, Chairman of the opposition United National Movement (UNM) party.

NGOs call on the General Prosecutor’s Office to study the circumstances, the current political context and discard the UNM leader’s imprisonment motion. According to the statement, imprisonment of the opposition leader hints at selective justice.

“Selective persecution of the largest opposition party’s leader irreparably damages the democratic image of the country. It poses a real risk of destabilization in the face of political polarization. The responsibility for the created political crisis lies primarily with the ruling power,” reads the statement.

Open Society Georgia Foundation (OSGF), Transparency International – Georgia (TIG), Georgian Democracy Initiative (GDI), Democracy Research Institute (DRI), and Institute for Democracy and Safe Development (IDSD) signed the statement.

The trial of Nika Melia, Chairman of the opposition United National Movement (UNM) party, is underway at Tbilisi City Court. Representatives of opposition parties are gathered at the UNM central office waiting for the court decision.

Melia was charged with incitement to violence during the June protests in the Georgian capital Tbilisi in 2019 and was released on GEL 30,000 bail. UNM Chairman defied the bail conditions by removing his monitoring bracelet. The court increased the bail amount to GEL 40,000 in November 2020 following the violation. Melia did not pay the added bail either.

The General Prosecutor’s Office (POG) warned Melia of a motion to substitute the bail with custody. POG appealed to the Georgian parliament to suspend his parliamentary immunity to request his arrest from the court. The parliament greenlit measures against Melia with 88 votes pro on February 16.