“Zurab Japaridze’s case is purely political which signals direct attacks on political leaders,” said ex-president Salome Zourabichvili echoing the imprisonment of Zurab Japaridze, leader of the Girchi-More Freedom party.

According to Zourabichvili, today’s trial had nothing in common with the court.

“Today turned yet another shameful day for the Georgian Dream. What they staged is deplorable: nobody was admitted, the trial was held in a tiny courtroom and the process resulted in what everybody knew in advance. Zurab Japaridze was sent in pre-detention. This had nothing in common with the court. It is a purely political case, which signals that direct attacks on political leaders begin.

On the one hand, we have civic activists and public figures who are in jail for nothing and now another stage kicks off in the case of political leaders. The investigation commission was established to arrest political leaders and see them in jails rather than to investigate crimes committed by the previous regime. This is deplorable. However, this is another sign of the Georgian Dream’s weakness, that they no longer know where and how far to extend repression.

All regimes in this situation applying repression are destined to end. We need perseverance, but we must know that the verdict has been made today for the Georgian Dream,” she said.