Burn Soros - save the country: another action of the Georgian March

Another protest rally of the Georgian nationalist movement called The Georgian March ("March of Georgians") was held in the center of Tbilisi. The protesters burned an effigy of the founder of George Soros Foundation, calling him "the enemy of Georgia."

The protest march began near the Rustaveli metro station and ended near the office of the Open Society Georgia Foundation where, shouting "Glory to the people, death to the enemy", the protesters demanded closure of the "anti-state" Soros foundation and prohibition of all financed from abroad non-governmental organizations in Georgia.

"This was a kind of ultimatum towards the Soros Foundation. We ask them to leave the territory of Georgia in the same way as it happened in Hungary and Austria. Like in other European countries, the activities of the Soros Foundation should also be banned in Georgia ... And in general, so should be banned the activities of non-governmental organizations financed from abroad which influence Georgian policy. We are starting on Monday. We will give a briefing. We start collecting half a million signatures concerning two issues: restoring the graph of nationality in passports, as well as prohibiting the activities of non-governmental organizations financed from abroad. These are our requirements. It was a warning action. Further, the rallies will be more ambitious and permanent," said Sandro Bregadze, one of the leaders of the Georgian March, former Deputy State Minister for Diaspora Affairs of Georgia.

EADaily reported earlier that on July 14, 2017, the Georgian March held a more extensive protest, during which several thousand people with slogans "Protect Georgia" staged a procession on Agmashenebeli Avenue in the center of Tbilisi, protesting against the "domination of foreigners" and the many oriental cafes in downtown. Their claims were that in these cafes and restaurants there are often no signs in the Georgian language and they do not serve Georgians. In addition, they came out with a demand to tighten immigration policies and expel illegal immigrants from Georgia. In early February, the leaders of the Georgian March came up with the idea of forming the so-called "people's patrols", which will be on duty in the streets of Tbilisi. The functions of a nationalist squad, according to their leaders, will include the suppression of violations of public order by migrants.