Imprisoned former Prime Minister of Georgia Irakli Garibashvili has published his third open letter, in which the politician alleges threats to arrest members of his family.
Garibashvili claims that the letter demanding he “plead guilty to corruption”—which he disclosed three days prior—was delivered by one of the leaders of Georgian Dream, Mamuka Mdinaradze, “through his close friend” to a member of Garibashvili’s family.
“This person was dragged into this story purely by accident, which is why I deliberately refrain from disclosing their name.” As for Mdinaradze, according to the former prime minister, if he does not want to harm innocent people, he should stop spreading lies and take full responsibility.
“For eight months now, I have been silently sitting in prison. No one has heard a single public word from me. I haven’t taken a step to the left or to the right. Now I address the authorities: from the very beginning, you orchestrated a dirty provocation against me, set a disgraceful trap; I took you at your word, followed you sincerely and with blind trust, but you deceived and betrayed me, condemned me to retribution, stormed into my house as if I were a robber and a criminal, ruined my family, terrorized my wife and children, raided the homes of my mother and father, my father-in-law and mother-in-law…
I endured all this terrible pain and tragedy patiently and silently in my heart because of my 20-year relationship with Bidzina Ivanishvili, out of my immense love, respect, boundless gratitude, and absolute devotion to him… And for the sake of the interests of my political family, the team, and our country, I silently bore all this weight and walked of my own accord into the merciless slaughter you arranged. In the end, you sent me to prison for a term of five years—driven by false perceptions, speculation, envy, fears, and suspicions harbored by a specific faction within the team. Completely without justification, you sacrificed me and doomed me to prison.”
According to Garibashvili, even in prison he is given no peace: they are demanding that he plead guilty to corruption “merely to hedge against your so-called one percent risk and remove me from politics permanently.” The former prime minister claims that this has been accompanied by “immoral blackmail and pressure”: “For the second time, hints were made regarding the arrest of my 75-year-old father.”
“I am not at war with anyone; I am only defending myself and my family. Therefore, to your every move, I will be forced to respond in kind. <…> As for the disgraceful and defamatory campaign you organized on social media and television, and the false claims and narratives of your experts and spokespersons, I will say one thing: be careful—soon you will be ashamed of your own statements once you realize my truth,” Garibashvili writes.
According to the former prime minister, certain forces are attempting to portray him as a “traitor to the country, the team, and Bidzina Ivanishvili.” However, the politician insists that he has never gone, and will never go, against his country.
As a reminder, on August 18, Irakli Garibashvili also published an open letter in which he described the primary aim of the campaign against him “on behalf of Bidzina Ivanishvili” as an effort to prevent his return to politics. At that time, he stated that the role of intermediary was played by the former head of the State Security Service, currently Minister of Regional Development, Mamuka Mdinaradze.
Mdinaradze himself explained Garibashvili’s letter by arguing that the authorities are waging an “uncompromising fight against corruption.”
