The Public Defender of Georgia and NGOs reported disproportionate police violence against protesters
The Office of the Public Defender of Georgia criticized the actions of the police, which dispersed peaceful citizen protests against the results of the parliamentary elections.
The Ombudsman called on the Ministry of Internal Affairs to ensure freedom of peaceful assembly for protesters, not to interfere with the activities of journalists, and to strictly adhere to the criteria of necessity and proportionality when making arrests and using special means.
The NGO Democracy Research Center (DRC) also reported that on November 19, law enforcement officers used disproportionate force against protesters. Moreover, the number of police exceeded the number of participants in the peaceful protest, and there was no need to use physical force. The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia reported the detention of 16 people.
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili filed a lawsuit with the Constitutional Court regarding violations in the parliamentary elections. In it, she pointed out two problems: "restrictions on the ability of citizens living abroad to vote in the elections and violation of the secrecy of the ballot."
