Margvelashvili urges to ease drug policy in Georgia

Georgia's President Giorgi Margvelashvili has assessed the events that took place on Rustaveli Avenue during the last two days as a "total failure of political and administrative actions” at today’s briefing.

"There were a full range of mistakes starting with the police raid. How can we manage to reach this level of civil confrontation in just a few hours? There are questions which need very direct answers," he said, adding that the major goal is to maintain freedom of expression while on the other hand to keep order in Tbilisi streets and in the socio-political process at the same time.

He also thanked the police who were trying to prevent a confrontation between the two opposite groups of protesters and ensuring their safety at Rustaveli Avenue yesterday.

Margvelashvili said the drug policy should be liberal and fight against drugs trafficking needs to be carried out against traffickers, not users. 

"We need an anti drugs campaign which should be lead by people who are close to the clubgoers hearts - representatives of club stages, Djs, influential clubers," Agenda.ge cited Margvelashvili as saying.

At the 12-13 May protest rally organized by the White Noise movement, protesters occupied Rustaveli Avenue criticizing the police raid of Tbilisi night clubs of Bassiani and Café Gallery. Protesters also have demanded a more liberal drug policy. They were confronted by counter protesters headed by ultra-nationalist movement Georgian National Unity demanding the pro-liberalisation rally stop.