Georgian President: To be precise, I didn't pardon ‘political prisoners’

"To be precise, I did not pardon ‘political prisoners’. There are no political prisoners in Georgia," President of Georgia Salome Zurabishvili said, responding to MEP Anna Fotyga’s tweet, posted after the release of the opposition leaders Gigi Ugulava and Irakli Okruashvili.

“To be precise, I did not pardon ‘political prisoners’. There are no political prisoners in Georgia. And I would be grateful for this fact to be taken into consideration when commenting on the Georgian situation,” President Zurabishvili tweeted.

MEP Anna Fotyga has welcomed the pardon of Gigi Ugulava and Irakli Okruashvili. "I welcome the pardon of political prisoners Gigi Ugulava and Irakli Okruashvili by President of Georgia Salome Zurabishvili. Citizens of Georgia deserve only progress. I expect the 2020 elections to be free and fair,” the MEP tweeted.

Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili pardoned two leaders of the opposition, making the relevant statement at the special briefing on Friday evening. 

Before the release of the President’s Pardon Act, several members of the European Parliament urged Georgian authorities to fulfill March 8 agreement and release "political prisoners." 

By Ana Dumbadze 

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