A researcher at the Laboratory for the Study of the Soviet Past (SovLab), activist Badri Okudzhava, was attacked in the center of Tbilisi, UNN reports with reference to Novosti Georgia.
Details
The incident happened this afternoon in the area of Barnova Street. Okudzhava says that an unknown person stopped him and asked why he was painting on the walls. The SovLab employee replied that he was going to work and did not know anything about any walls.
According to Okudzhava, up to 10 more people later appeared at the scene, beating him and spray-painting him. He hinted at a political motive, calling the attackers "voters" of the ruling Georgian Dream party.
A few days ago, Okudzhava shared a photo on his Facebook page showing a man with paint and a painters' coat. The caption said that he was correcting the inscription "kotsoba - slavery" to "natsoba - slavery" (the word "kotsoba" refers to the ideology of the Georgian Dream, "natsoba" to the National Movement). It is unclear whether this fact is related to the attack.
Okudzhava reported the incident to the police today. The Georgian Interior Ministry has not yet commented on the beating.