Four people detained at action in Batumi

Relatives of seven arrested opponents of the construction of the Namakhvan hydroelectric power plant (HPP) have held a march in Batumi. At the building of the Adjara Government, they had clashes with policemen; at least four activists were detained.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on April 12, the police set up a cordon near the village of Gumati; and the next day, on the road to the village of Namakhvani, law enforcers installed metal barriers to prevent the march of protesters against the construction of the HPP. Clashes broke out; and on April 17, a court arrested six activists. Another protester was detained on April 23. On May 15, a protest action was held in Batumi demanding the release of the detainees. The protesters treated the seven detainees (they are all athletes) as victims of political persecutions.

On June 20, relatives of the seven detained athletes gathered again in Batumi for a protest action and marched along central streets under the motto "Freedom to all illegally detained persons!"

Detainees' relatives continue insisting that the April 12 incident was the result of a provocation; while the detention of activists was a "political revenge" for detainees' criticism of the government. During the action, clashes with policemen broke out; and at least four people were detained.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on June 20, 2021 at 05:21 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.