TBILISI: A Georgia court on Monday sentenced a prominent opposition leader to eight months in jail, in the latest case critics say there is part of a growing crack on dissatisfaction.Georgia has been in political upheaval since Georgia won the parliamentary elections last October.Its results were disputed by the opposition and provoked massive protests, which intensified only after the government’s membership talks by the government.The protesters accused the ruling party of slipping into powerism and accused the country of taking the country close to Moscow – the government refused.Opposition Lello party leader and a staunch government critic, Mamuka Khazradz, was sentenced to eight months in jail by a Tabilisi court and stopped from holding a public position for two years.He was convicted of refusing to testify before a parliamentary commission, investigating the alleged abuses under former Jail President Mikhile Sakshwili.Sakshwili has been sentenced to jail for more than a decade on various allegations, which have been described as politically motivated by rights groups.Dancing, who boycotted the trial, condemned the case as a “political witch hunting”, “accusing the government” to use its oppressive machinery and break the opposition “.“Terror in Georgia: The government is intensifying its repression,” former President and opposition leader Salom Udloomi said after the verdict.Khajradaze’s jelling arrests and a wave of prosecution comes to target the opposition data and rights activists. Another LELO leader, Badri Japardaze, is to be held in court on Monday.Earlier this month, the courts ordered the pre-examination of three more opposition leaders on equal allegations. He has refused to cooperate with a parliamentary investigation, condemning it as a tool for illegitimate and dissatisfaction.Next to last year’s disputed elections, Georgian Dream announced a plan to ban all major opposition parties.
