Anti-Namakhvani protesters and family members of detained Irakli Mukbaniani are holding a protest rally in Sakulia village in the Imereti region of Georgia.

Rally participants demand Mukbaniani’s release as well as the termination of the criminal prosecution of those who resisted the police during the rally.

Mukbaniani was detained in Sakulia village for assaulting a police officer during a demonstration a couple of days ago.

“The accused person attacked and physically assaulted a police officer on duty during a protest rally against the construction of the Namakhvani hydropower plant in the village of Gumati, Tskaltubo Municipality. During the arrest of I.M., local residents offered resistance to the police officers after which the police used coercive measures in accordance with the law,” the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) said.

The committed crime envisages from 4 to 7 years of imprisonment.

The protests against the HPP construction have been underway in western Georgia for almost six months. The Georgian government suspended the HPP construction for 9 to 12 months until the environmental, geological, and seismological surveys are reviewed. Nevertheless, local protesters plan to continue rallies. They believe the HPP would be constructed anyway, which they oppose.