Zurabishvili speaks to supporters of European integration on Rustaveli Avenue in Tbilisi
On Rustaveli Avenue in Tbilisi, Salome Zurabishvili, the fifth President of Georgia, has congratulated on Independence Day the participants of the daily action in support of the country’s European integration.
The events on the occasion of Independence Day were held on Rustaveli Avenue throughout the whole day of May 26. The “Freedom Square” movement has set up a special tent where anyone could symbolically sign the Act of Independence.
Activists gave a special gift – a “protest diary” – to those who donated to the “Freedom Fund”, which helps opposition members pay fines for participating in pro-European protest actions, the “Pirveli” TV channel reports.
By the evening, a stage was erected in front of the parliament building for Salome Zurabishvili, the fifth president of Georgia, to address the crowd. The leaders of the pro-European parties went out to Rustaveli Avenue together with the protesters, who had gathered there for the 180th day in a row.
A protest action was also taking place in Batumi in front of the Constitutional Court building at the same time as in Tbilisi. Activists unfolded a poster with the inscription citing the words of journalist Mziya Amaglobeli as saying: “Fight before it’s too late.”
In her speech, Salome Zurabishvili answered a question that some of the protesters asked: should they celebrate Independence Day as a holiday until political prisoners are released.
“This question worries all of us. We celebrate because we are already winners: seven months have passed since the parliamentary elections and six months since the illegal government decided to stop our path to Europe. Georgia is still standing and therefore is a winner,” the fifth president claimed.
After the Salome Zurabishvili’s speech, video messages from a number of Western politicians congratulating Georgian citizens on Independence Day were shown on the stage, as well as audio messages from those arrested for participating in protest actions.
This was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on May 26, 2025 at 09:55 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.