The case of activist Sandro Megrelishvili, who was detained for standing on a sidewalk, was examined by the Tbilisi Court of Appeal without an oral hearing, and the appeal was dismissed. According to Megrelishvili’s lawyer, Irakli Abesadze, the decision was taken by Court of Appeal Judge Shorena Kavelashvili.

On 23 January 2026, Judge Davit Makaradze of the Tbilisi City Court sentenced Sandro Megrelishvili to four days of administrative detention in connection with a protest conducted on a sidewalk. It was this decision that Megrelishvili’s lawyer appealed before the higher-instance court.On 12 December 2025, the “Georgian Dream” party adopted another repressive legislative amendment restricting the right to freedom of assembly. The amendments were adopted following accelerated parliamentary consideration over a three-day period. As a result of these amendments, protest activity on sidewalks was, in effect, also prohibited. For a first violation, the legislation provides for administrative detention for a period of up to 15 days (up to 20 days in the case of an organizer), while a repeated violation may result in the imposition of criminal liability. According to the assessment of Transparency International Georgia, “the detention of an individual for standing on a sidewalk, even under administrative procedure, let alone the imposition of criminal punishment cannot withstand any criticism when assessed against the standards of freedom of assembly guaranteed by the Constitution of Georgia and by international human rights instruments.”