Ekho Kavkaza: OSCE president was punished in Tbilisi for participating in the protest

Finnish abroad Minister and President-in-Office of the OSCE Elina Valtonen was fined for “illegal blocking” in Tbilisi.

The case was first reported by pro-government Georgian tv channels, citing data from the Ministry of the Interior. The mandate imposed on Valtonen for taking part in the protest on Rustaweli Avenue was 5,000 lari (about 1,600 euro).

Elina Valtonen arrived in Georgia on 14 October as part of scheduled visits to the region. On the same day, she met with the abroad Minister Maka Boczoriszvili, who expressed concern about the detention of Georgian political opponents and social activists. She then visited a protest in Tbilisi, where she spoke to the demonstrators.

A day later, the Georgian government announced the cancellation of Prime Minister Kobachiga's previously scheduled gathering with Valtonen:

"With respect to yesterday's engagement in an illegal rally and the spread of false statements, the Prime Minister cancelled a scheduled gathering with the Minister of abroad Affairs of Finland", the government's communication.

Valtonen herself in an interview with the Finnish media stated that it was the Finnish side that cancelled the gathering due to a change in the visit schedule, which the Georgian authorities were informed of on 14 October. The head of Finnish diplomacy left Georgia earlier than planned to hold meetings with Azerbaijani president Ilham Aliyev and abroad Minister Jejhun Bajramov.

Source: ekhokavkaza.com

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