TBILISI

Former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, detained since his surprise return to his homeland last month after eight years in exile, pledged to end a six-week-old hunger strike if authorities allowed him to be treated in a civilian clinic, but authorities refused his demand.

Hundreds of Saakashvili’s supporters have staged daily street rallies since the appearance of a video showing him dragged by force from his cell to the prison hospital. Police earlier this week arrested more than 40 demonstrators on public order offences.

Saakashvili, who led the country from 2004-13, was convicted in absentia of abuse of office. He returned to the country surreptitiously on the eve of local elections, vowing to “save the country” from more than a year of political deadlock. But his arrival pitched the country further into turmoil. He was almost immediately detained and a trial in which he is charged with forcefully dispersing a 2007 opposition rally opened in Tbilisi this week.

Appeal by European court

In a rambling Facebook posting, Saakashvili said he was heeding a call by the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg to halt his hunger strike, provided he received appropriate treatment.

“… I have decided to consider the Strasbourg Court of Human Rights, as well as our Western partners, and end the hunger strike. with only one consideration: the process of rehabilitation after starvation is much more complicated than the process of starvation management,” the former president wrote. “In this situation, as soon as this decision is made and I am transferred from this facility to the appropriate facility, I will immediately end the hunger strike.”

But Justice Minister Rati Bregadze rejected Saakashvili’s request for a transfer to a civilian hospital, saying the ex-president would be returned to the Rustavi detention center once he ends his hunger strike.

Saakashvili was the founder of the United National Movement (UNM), which was beaten by the ruling Georgian Dream party in most large cities in the local elections, seen as a barometer of the government’s popularity. The poll took place five months after an agreement brokered by the European Union to end a standoff in the aftermath of contest national elections, restore normal parliamentary activity and launch judicial and electoral reform.

Nika Melia, the UNM leader, jailed for three months this year on charges of fomenting violence, lost to incumbent Tbilisi mayor Kakha Kaladze in the local poll.

The opposition said the election was rigged and demanded Saakashvili’s release. The United States and the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe European Union expressed serious misgivings about the conduct of the vote, citing intimidation, offensive rhetoric, misuse of administrative resources, and reports of blatant vote-buying.

Saakashvili was taken to prison in the town of Rustavi, outside the capital after entering the country illegally. He urged his supporters to “take power back” and began refusing food, reporting subsequently on his Facebook page that he had lost 20 kg.

The latest video of his transfer to the prison hospital, issued by the State Penitentiary Service of Georgia, showed Saakashvili being dragged and carried out of his prison cell by several men whose faces were blurred out. Other portions of videos released on social media showed Saakashvili berating prison officials pleading with him to cooperate for the sake of his health.

Opposition, rights activists denounce video

Opposition politicians and rights activists denounced the video and the justice minister’s statement. Georgia’s ombudsman, Nino Lomjaria, called the video proof that Saakashvili was transferred against his will.

The ex-president’s supporters staged a fresh rally on Thursday to demand Saakashvili receive the treatment of his choice — this time in front of the office of the State Security Service.

At the opening of the trial this week, authorities did not bring Saakashvili to the court hearing, citing COVID restrictions, the state of the ex-president’s health and suggestions that his presence “may provoke disorder”.

His co-defendant, former Tbilisi Mayor Gigi Ugulava, was ordered to leave the courtroom after he demanded Saakashvili’s presence at the trial.

Saakashvili, who spent much of his eight years in exile holding various administrative positions in Ukraine, denies any role in the violent dispersal of protesters in Tbilisi in November 2007. The trial was adjourned until November 29.