Germany, France and Poland condemn use of force against protesters in Georgia

BERLIN (AP) — The foreign ministers of Germany, France and Poland on Saturday strongly condemned “the disproportionate use of force” against peaceful protesters and the targeting of the opposition and media representatives in Georgia.

Mass protests in Georgia fueled by the governing party’s decision to suspend negotiations on joining the European Union entered a second week on Thursday, with police cracking down on demonstrators with increasing force.

In their joint statement, the three foreign ministers called for the immediate release of opposition members. They demanded that “fundamental rights, including freedom of peaceful assembly and freedom of expression, must be upheld and protected as per Georgia’s constitution and international commitments.”

The ruling Georgian Dream party retained control of parliament in a disputed Oct. 26 election, a vote widely seen as a referendum on Georgia’s EU aspirations. The opposition and the pro-Western president, Salome Zourabichvili, have accused the governing party of rigging the vote with neighboring Russia’s help and have boycotted parliament sessions.

Opposition protests gained new momentum after the Georgian Dream’s decision last Thursday to put the EU accession talks on hold.

Riot police have used water cannons and tear gas to disperse the rallies and beat scores of protesters, who threw fireworks at police officers and built barricades on the Georgian capital’s central boulevard. Hundreds have been detained and over 100 people have been treated for injuries since the start of the clashes.

Another 50 protesters were detained Friday night, Georgian officials said Saturday. Police chased demonstrators through the streets of Tbilisi until the early morning hours of Saturday and violently detained some of them.

The crackdown has drawn a strong condemnation from the United States. Speaking at a ministerial conference of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday denounced what he described as a brutal “repression of those calling for their country to stay on the path to closer ties with Europe.”

On Saturday, Germany, France and Poland called on “Georgian Dream to deescalate tensions and open an inclusive dialogue with all political forces and representatives of civil society.”

“We underscore our determination to support the democratic and European aspirations of the Georgian people,” the statement said.