Georgia Government Claims There is a British ‘Foreign Instructor’ Organising Riots

A man identified as a British citizen has been arrested in Georgia, allegedly after breaking into the nation’s parliament amid days of riots in the capital over the question of European Union membership.

Georgia, on the eastern shore of the Black Sea in Transcaucasia has experienced days of riots over whether the country is to join the European Union, each side bitterly accusing the other of foreign interference in national matters. As part of those accusations the Georgian government, which was re-elected in a landslide earlier this year but in a vote which opponents say was rigged by the Kremlin, has claimed many of those causing violence at recent riots in the capital are foreign citizens.

Allegedly buttressing these claims a pro-government Georgian broadcaster published a compilation of clips showing people at the protest speaking in foreign languages or accents, among them a man with a British accent. It is claimed the man was involved in a group that attempted to break into the Georgian Parliament at the weekend.

In the clip the man introduces himself as “Daniel Travis” and says he’s from Liverpool. Asked why he was present he replied “I was passing, I just want to go home”.

The Times of London states it is thought Travis is a British expat who recently rented an apartment in Tbilisi and told his landlord that he was an English teacher. A Foreign Office spokesman told the paper: “We are in contact with the local authorities regarding the arrest of a British national in Tbilisi.”

The Georgian state rejects the notion the Briton was an innocent bystander, however, with claims he was a professional foreign agitator. Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze has claimed in recent days the protests are being attended by what he calls “foreign instructors” orchestrating violence.

Russian state media has also got involved, promoting remarks by a senior figure of the Georgian ruling party ‘Georgian Dream’ Mamuka Mdinaradze, who is reported to have said: “Thirty percent of the people who were identified at the protests in Tbilisi are citizens of other countries. What is going on? Can someone please explain this oddity?”.

Police in Tbilisi cracked down on anti-government protesters for the fifth night in a row late on Monday, with police water canon and tear gas launchers deployed to keep activists away from parliament. As previously reported, Georgia has been on the road to joining the European Union for years, but whether there is a democratic mandate for this is hotly challenged by both sides.

On one hand polling states an overwhelming majority — 80 per cent — are said to be pro-Europe. But at election time, the Georgia Dream party — denigrated by its critics as being a tool of Russia — has won every Parliamentary election for over a decade. Critics, including the country’s President Salome Zourabichvili question the legitimacy of the elections themselves and therefore the legitimacy of the government.

Pro-Western Zourabichvili has recently threatened to refuse to leave office even though fresh Presidential elections are due this year, citing a “one party state” that is emerging and a “coup” against the people by the government. The European Union says it rejects the October 2024 Georgian elections and has demanded a re-run within one year. The United States has also been vocal on Georgia, its ambassador saying recent actions by Tbilisi “cast doubt on this government’s commitment to the Western path” and note its decisions are “immediately praised by the Kremlin.”

The U.S. urged the Georgian government to “reconsider its actions and return Georgia to the path of EU, Western integration and democracy, which is the desire of the clear majority of the Georgian population.”