Overview
- Nika Melia, a top Coalition for Change leader, was detained Thursday and placed in pre-trial detention after declining to attend a parliamentary inquiry into alleged offenses from former President Mikheil Saakashvili’s tenure.
- Last week’s similar action saw fellow opposition figure Zurab Japaridze held for refusing to cooperate with the same inquiry, marking a second high-profile detention in just over a week.
- Critics accuse the ruling Georgian Dream party of steering the country toward authoritarianism and deepening ties with Russia, reversing Georgia’s previous pro-Western trajectory.
- After winning a disputed November 2024 election, Georgian Dream suspended European Union accession talks until 2028, prompting months of mass protests and a forceful government response.
- In December 2024, the United States imposed sanctions on Georgian Dream leader Bidzina Ivanishvili for actions deemed to undermine Georgian democracy in favor of Russia.