Georgian Parliament official: violence against US citizen, mistaken for Russian, reveals “face of radical opposition”

Rati Ionatamishvili, the Chair of the Georgian Parliament’s Human Rights and Civil Integration Committee, on Monday said that the recent incident during a protest on Rustaveli Avenue revealed the “darkness” that exists within the domestic radical opposition.

His remarks followed an attack on a US citizen by several protest participants, who allegedly mistook the individual for a Russian tourist. Police intervened quickly to defuse the situation.

In his interview with Imedi TV, Ionatamishvili criticised the opposition, pointing out the contradiction between their rhetoric and actions.

"These are the same people who speak to us about the European Union and European values, yet they have nothing in common with such values”, the Parliament official said.

He stressed that violence was unacceptable regardless of the victim’s nationality.

“What difference does it make which country the person is from? Violence, in general, is absolutely unacceptable. This is simply the face of the radical opposition as a whole”, he concluded.

The attack, which occurred yesterday on Rustaveli Avenue in the capital city of Tbilisi, was promptly contained by law enforcement, preventing further escalation.