Workers participating in a three-hour general strike called by opponents of the Georgian government were attacked in the street, reportedly by members of the ruling Georgian Dream party.
Footage circulating on social media showed baton-wielding individuals attacking people on the streets who were participating in the strike.
A local independent media outlet says the incumbent Georgian Dream party, led by Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, hired the individuals, referred to as “titushky”, a term used to describe hired thugs usually in service of government or political groups.
Protesters from various companies participating in the nationwide strikes were physically and verbally assaulted according to local media.
Demonstrators chanted, blew whistles and waved Georgian and European Union flags side-by-side as they joined the marches organised around the capital, Tbilisi.
Organisers of the three-hour long strike say that the protest was intended as a warning of what the country would face in isolation, the direction they say Georgia is headed towards after Kobakhidze announced the suspension of the country’s EU membership talks.
A report indicated that more than 350 businesses across the country participated in the strike.
Violent attacks have increased in Georgia over the past few days. The country’s former Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia, who now leads one of the country’s main opposition groups, was hospitalised after being severely assaulted on Tuesday.
A statement released on his official account on social media platform X, formerly Twitter, accusing the founder of the Georgian Dream party, Bidzina Ivanishvili, of orchestrating the assault.
“Giorgi Gakharia, leader of the “for Georgia” party and former prime minister of Georgia, was brutally attacked in a coordinated group assault orchestrated by Ivanishvili’s regime in Batumi.”
The statement added that the attack was politically motivated and was a “blatant attempt to intimidate the opposition and suppress dissent”.
On Wednesday, Gakharia released another statement to update supporters on his health after the violent incident a day prior. “I want to sincerely thank everyone for their support. Healthwise, I’m doing fine,” said Gakharia.
