Riot police in Georgia used pepper spray and water cannon against protesters who turned out on the streets of Tbilisi after the government suspended moves to join the European Union.
Forty-three people were arrested at the demonstrations in the capital on Thursday night, the government said.
Crowds turned out after Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze said his government would drop its pursuit of EU membership “until the end of 2028” – a move criticised by more than 100 diplomats on Friday as “unconstitutional”.
Kobakhidze had accused the bloc of “blackmail” after EU legislators called for last month’s parliamentary elections in Georgia to be re-run. They cited “significant irregularities”.
Since 2012, Georgia has been governed by Georgian Dream, a party which critics say has tried to move the country away from the EU and closer to Russia.
The party claimed victory in last month’s election but opposition MPs are boycotting the new parliament, alleging fraud, while the country’s President Salome Zurabishvili, has called the one-party parliament “unconstitutional”.
On Thursday, the European Parliament backed a resolution describing the election as the latest stage in Georgia’s “worsening democratic crisis” and saying that the ruling party was “fully responsible”.
It expressed particular concern about reports of voter intimidation, vote buying and manipulation, and harassment of observers.
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The European Parliament also urged sanctions against Georgia’s Prime Minister and other high-level officials including the billionaire founder of the governing party Bidzina Ivanishvili.
Following the resolution, Georgia’s Prime Minister said his government had “decided not to bring up the issue of joining the European Union on the agenda until the end of 2028”.
He said Georgia would still seek EU membership but with “dignity” and on its own terms.
Kobakhidze also lashed out at European politicians for “hurling a cascade of insults” at the Georgian government.
In response, thousands of pro-EU protesters demonstrated outside Georgian Dream offices in the cities of Tbilisi and Kutaisi.
Protesters see the government’s U-turn as a betrayal of a national aspiration. The goal of European integration is enshrined in Georgia’s constitution.
Police started dispersing the rally at 02:00 local time Friday, using batons, tear gas and water cannons after demonstrators barricaded some streets in Tbilisi.
The protest lasted until 06:00 local time, but further demonstrations are expected later on Friday.
Georgia’s interior ministry said protesters resorted to provocations on many occasions, damaging infrastructure and “badly injuring” 32 police officers.
The precise number of injured protesters is unknown, but a member of the opposition group Coalition for Change said one if its members, Nana Malashkhia, had their nose broken.
“During the crackdown, we took shelter in a pharmacy, but the special forces stormed in after us. If it was not for the presence of the media, they might have beaten us to death,” Giorgi Butikashvili told the BBC.
Footage on social media also showed a journalist from the opposition Formula TV station being severely beaten by the police.
Other media representatives wearing clearly marked press labels were also targeted.
BBC.com
