Pro-European protests in Georgia have continued for 464 consecutive days.

Participants at the rally near the Georgian Parliament on Rustaveli Avenue congratulated Archimandrite Dorota Kurashvili, who was defrocked and stripped of his right to conduct religious services for supporting protesters, on his birthday.

As "Caucasian Knot" reported, on March 5, the 463rd day of continuous protests near the Georgian Parliament, amendments criminalizing non-recognition of government bodies and "extremism against the constitutional order" came into force. Participants at the rally on Rustaveli Avenue responded to these amendments with their own posters.

Supporters of Georgia's European integration gathered on the pedestrian section of Rustaveli Avenue today, the 464th day of continuous protests, with national and EU flags. Activists held posters reading "The press is inviolable" and "We recognize them as budget thieves and robbers of the people," according to a Facebook post by photographer Mo Se*.

During the protest, those gathered congratulated Archimandrite Dorota Kurashvili on his birthday: activists presented him with a cake with candles and sang a congratulatory song, Tbilisi Life reports.

On December 15, the Georgian Patriarchate banned Archimandrite Dorota Kurashvili from conducting religious services; he had previously been defrocked for supporting protesters. That day, Georgia's fifth president, Salome Zurabishvili, spoke out in support of Kurashvili; she attended the protest outside parliament. Kurashvili himself stated that he would continue to support the protesters and the country's democratic development "not as a priest, but as a citizen."

Protesters in Georgia have been demanding new parliamentary elections and the release of political prisoners since November 28, 2024. Security forces violently dispersed the protests, using tear gas and water cannons, and detained protesters. Over 1,000 people were subjected to administrative prosecution during the protests. The "Caucasian Knot" has prepared a report, "Key Points to the Persecution of Protesters in Georgia".