Georgian Businessman Deported for Alleged Financing of Opposition, and Georgian Deputies Aren’t Let to Belarus

According to RFE/RL

The authorities of Georgia inform that seven deputies of the Georgian Parliament were detained at Minsk airport and sent back home. The deputies were going to take part in monitoring of the presidential election. The deputy speaker of the Georgian Parliament Mikhail Machavariani told RFE/RL that the deputies were interrogated by the Belarusian KGB. He explained it with the fact that before this KGB accused one of Georgian MPs in planning a coup d’etat in Belarus.

Earlier the Belarusian authorities stated they won’t let Georgian observers to Belarus. The president of Georgia Mikhail Saakashvili commented on the detention with an adherent of the Belarusian opposition for waving the Georgian flag in Minsk by saying this flag had already become a symbol of freedom in Belarus.

At the same time the authorities deport the Georgian businessman Shalva Ninoa for alleged financing of the opposition. According to the KGB, in Minsk apartment of Sh.Ninoa they found blanks of state organs and ‘other evidence of his financing of the Belarusian opposition with the aim to destabilize the situation in the country. Shalva Ninoa was shown by the evening news of the Belarusian TV channel ONT after the press conference of the KGB chair Stsiapan Sukharenka and other top-rank officials. The KGB chair stated to journalists the Georgian secret services helped to train terrorists that would try to make a series of terrorist acts in Belarus.

According to the Belarusian legislation, it is the procurator’s office that issues rulings for deportation of foreign citizens. However, nothing has been said about such ruling regarding Mr Ninoa. At the same time, the Georgian officials blankly disproved the accusations about preparation of terrorist acts on the territory of Belarus.