Georgian court sentences former president Saakashvili to additional prison term

Wednesday 12 March 2025 - 14:02

By: Zahouani Ilham

Georgian court sentences former president Saakashvili to additional prison term

A Georgian court has sentenced former president Mikheil Saakashvili to an additional nine years in prison after convicting him of embezzlement. The ruling, announced on Wednesday, extends his imprisonment, as Saakashvili was already serving a six-year sentence. Critics of the government argue that this decision reflects an attempt to suppress opposition and tighten the government's control, which has been accused of reversing Georgia’s pro-Western trajectory and growing closer to Russia.

Judge Badri Kochlamazashvili found Saakashvili guilty of embezzling approximately nine million Georgian laris ($3.2 million) in state funds between 2009 and 2012. The former president allegedly spent the money on luxury hotels, cosmetic procedures, and expensive clothing, among other things.

Teimuraz Janashia, the former head of the Special State Protection Service, was fined 300,000 laris ($110,000) but was not found guilty of using the misappropriated funds.

This latest ruling adds three more years to Saakashvili’s prison term. After a period abroad, he returned to Georgia in 2021 and was incarcerated for six years on charges of abuse of power.

The announcement sparked protests in the courtroom, with Saakashvili's supporters accusing the judge of being under the influence of the Georgian Dream government. Petre Tsiskarishvili, Secretary-General of the United National Movement (UNM), which Saakashvili previously led, expressed that the government feared the former president as the main opposition figure, and did everything to keep him imprisoned.

Saakashvili himself denounced the ruling on social media, calling it politically motivated. He claimed the conviction was orchestrated by Bidzina Ivanishvili, founder and de facto leader of Georgian Dream, to prevent him from posing a political challenge.

Saakashvili became a divisive figure in Georgia. His rise to power was marked by the 2003 Rose Revolution, and during his presidency, he pursued reforms that aimed to align Georgia more closely with the West. However, his presidency was also tainted by allegations of police brutality and the disastrous 2008 war with Russia. After his political party, the UNM, lost the 2012 elections to Ivanishvili’s Georgian Dream, Saakashvili moved to Ukraine, where he briefly served as governor of Odesa.

In 2018, Saakashvili was sentenced in absentia to six years in prison. He returned to Georgia in 2021, only to be arrested immediately upon arrival. Since then, Georgian Dream has tightened its control over the country, suppressing protests and opposition forces.

In the aftermath of the October 2024 election, Georgian Dream’s victory was overshadowed by allegations of electoral manipulation, especially concerning Russian interference. Protests continued, and Saakashvili called on the international community to condemn the political imprisonment and suppression of peaceful protests in Georgia.