Experts Investigate Marijuana Seeds in Girchi Office
Police are investigating the office of The New Political Center Girchi following a marijuana-planting stunt shown on social media in which party members, with volunteers, planted marijuana in their office as a form of protest against Georgia’s strict drug policy.
Experts asked all party members to leave Girchi HQ while they searched the premises. Only party leaders Zurab Japaridze and Iago Khvichia were present throughout the process of investigation.
Before the start of the investigation, Party Chair, Zurab Japaridze, told journalists that there was nothing to investigate as the planting of marijuana seeds in the office had happened publicly. “The only thing that experts have to investigate is if the marijuana seeds in the pots are genuine,” he said. The pots were used to collect signatures from supporters of the decriminalization of the drug in Georgia. Japaridze said the investigation is being carried out under Article 265 which is “irrelevant in relation to the situation”.
“At around 12.00 am, the representatives of Ministry Internal Affairs came to our office with a search warrant from the court,” he said. “The investigation is being carried out under the first part of Article 265, which implies the cultivation of a plant containing a small quantity of drugs. But, in reality, the second and third parts of the Article were violated, as it was in large quantity and involved a group of people”.
He claims that at present there are more than 80 pots of marijuana in the office.
The violation of the first part of Article 265 of the Criminal Code is punishable by a fine or imprisonment for a term of two to five years.
The New Political Center Girchi is a Liberalist party which split from the United National Movement (UNM), and is chaired by Zurab Japaridze. The party is in opposition to the current Georgian Dream coalition. Founded in November 2015, the name Girchi (pine cone) was chosen as a symbol of freshness, greenery, growth and freedom.
Natia Liparteliani