The release of the Georgian opposition leader on bail

Georgian opposition leader Nika Melia was released on Monday.picture: Shakh Aivazov / AP / TT

The political crisis in Georgia has continued since the parliamentary elections on October 31, which the opposition claims have been marked by electoral fraud.

When Melia, accused of incitement to sedition, was arrested in February, it sparked mass protests and former Prime Minister Giorgi Jakharia resigned in protest against the arrest warrant.

The release of Melia, the leader of the United National Movement, on Monday, comes within the framework of an agreement reached during European Union mediation between the ruling Georgian Dream Party and the opposition.

According to the agreement, the opposition parties will participate again in the work of Parliament, while the Georgian Dream Organization promised a series of reforms. The ruling party also promised to solve “experienced politicized legal issues”, for example through amnesty – which is the case in the case of Melia.

However, Brussels offered to pay bail on Melia’s behalf to release him before agreeing to the pardon.

In April, the UN national movement did not want to sign an agreement brokered by the European Union, which was signed by the ruling and most opposition parties, until Melia was released.