"The polarization and confrontation in the country have reached an extremely dangerous level. Georgia is a small country, and in such conditions, the confrontation reaches all levels of society. Of course, the Government bears the primary responsibility, but the media also plays a special role, contributing to the formation of public opinion. The media must disseminate objective information free from hate speech. When expressing our opinions at the individual level, our opinions should not be imbued with hate speech, the desire to belittle and shame others. We are all equal before the law, everyone has the right to express his opinion, and the State is obliged to protect these fundamental rights.

As for the footage released by the media yesterday, where we saw investigative actions live, in the offices of political parties and various civil society organizations - given the importance and sensitivity of the issue, I call on the investigative bodies to conduct the investigation process as transparently as possible, to properly protect each person’s procedural rights and guarantees, and to provide information to the public in a timely manner.

In addition, I would like to inform the public that the Public Defender's Office continues to visit the persons detained and injured during the protests. We have already visited 260 people. It is regrettable that 188 of them indicate ill-treatment by the police.

Public Defender’s representatives have visited temporary detention centers and civil clinics in Tbilisi, Batumi, Kutaisi, Ozurgeti, Gori, Bagdati, Zestaponi, Samtredia, Mtskheta, Bakuriani, Khashuri, Gurjaani, Sighnaghi, Sagarejo and Dusheti.

My representatives have visited Nika Gvaramia, Gela Khasaia, Zurab Datunashvili, as well as 7 other persons arrested under criminal law in the very first hours of their arrest.

According to Nika Gvaramia, he was illegally arrested. During the arrest, he was subjected to physical violence and verbal abuse. The Public Defender’s Office has addressed the Special Investigation Service regarding the above-mentioned facts.

Gela Khasaia requested emergency medical assistance, after which communication was immediately established with the police representatives and the relevant medical crew was called.

I have explained many times and I will repeat it again - the methods used by law enforcement officers when arresting citizens are disturbing.

An alarming number of detainees indicate beating and ill-treatment, and even beyond their statements, the aforementioned methods are clearly visible in the footage released by the media.

In addition, I would like to separately highlight the disproportionate force used by the police officers against Aleko Elisashvili, who was detained yesterday. We visited him yesterday. He has bruises and scratches on his face, and he says he has suffered a back trauma as a result of the beating. We have already informed the Special Investigation Service about the ill-treatment of Aleko Elisashvili by the police. The investigation will be monitored by the Public Defender's Office.

Yesterday, we all saw the violation of the rights of citizens, who were going to the rally, near the metro station.

I call on the Ministry of Internal Affairs to strictly follow the rules when conducting police measures, including frisk searches provided for by the Law of Georgia on Police, and not to conduct mass searches of citizens without grounds established by law.

And finally, I would like to respond to the processes taking place in schools.

Both international and local legislation guarantees students’ right to assembly and to express an opinion, however, at the same time, politicization of schools, as well as interference in the educational process by third parties, is prohibited. It is unacceptable to let a student leave school or call for him to leave school without informing his parents. As the Public Defender and as a parent, I am particularly monitoring the events taking place in schools and will periodically provide information to the public.

Finally, I would like to thank journalists and cameramen who are covering the current developments in such difficult conditions and wish them peace and health”.