Parliamentary official: Saakashvili’s return to politics constitutes a “forced move” 2023

On Monday, the Chair of the Committee on Human Rights of the Georgian Parliament, Mikheil Sarjveladze, stated that the efforts of imprisoned former President Mikheil Saakashvili and his entourage to return to politics in the nation was a “forced move.” He also charged that their “main goal” was to “evade justice.”

The statement made by Sarjveladze was in response to a post made by Saakashvili on social media the previous week, in which he stated his intention to “actively participate” in the affairs of the country.

In response to the remark, an official from the Parliament stated that the local public had been “offered a false and untrue scenario […] when [Saakashvili’s supporters] said that someone was intentionally harming Saakashvili’s health [in detention]”.

It all turned out to be a lie. It became clear not only to the Georgian public, but also to the international community, that there was a simulation, the purpose of which was to evade fair and deserved justice”, Sarjveladze said.

It would appear that his primary objective, as well as that of his entourage, is to evade punishment, which is not likely to be viewed in a favorable light by the general public. The chair of the committee pointed out that because of this, it will be difficult for him to go back into politics.

Saakashvili was apprehended in Tbilisi in October 2021, shortly after his covert return to Georgia. He is now serving a six-year sentence for two distinct counts of abuse of power, and there are three additional cases regarding his term that are ongoing. He has been attending the Vivamedi clinic in the nation’s capital for treatment recently.

His attorneys and members of his family have asserted that the former President is in “urgent need” of treatment overseas. They assert that local physicians have been “unable” to give a “accurate diagnosis and ensure relevant treatment.”