Abkhaz mayor accused of assaulting opposition campaigner

Abkhaz mayor assaults oppositionist

According to local media, on January 19, Yuri Khagush, the mayor of Gagra in Abkhazia and a supporter of the ruling party’s presidential candidate Badr Gunba, allegedly assaulted Mikhail Golovin, an activist from the local campaign team of opposition candidate Adgur Ardzinba. Reports suggest that Khagush’s bodyguards beat Golovin, while the mayor allegedly threatened Golovin and his family with violence if he continued campaigning for Ardzinba.

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The initial report of the alleged assault was spread by opposition media, prompting several hundred opposition supporters to gather outside Gagra City Hall seeking to confront Mayor Yuri Khagush. However, they were told that the mayor was on leave and unavailable.

Supporters of the ruling party quickly dismissed the claims, accusing the opposition of fabricating the incident. To back their position, they shared an interview on social media with Mikhail Golovin’s father, in which he stated that there had been no assault and referred to Yuri Khagush as a “good neighbor.”

In response, the opposition countered that the interview was given under pressure.

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The incident was triggered by a dispute during the discussion of a bill to tighten penalties for cryptocurrency mining.

Mikhail Golovin, the opposition activist at the center of the controversy, has broken his silence, confirming that he was indeed assaulted. He recounted the incident:

I was forced into a car. They asked if I supported Adgur Ardzinba. When I said yes, they hit me.

Golovin emphasized that his decision to speak out was prompted by his father’s earlier statement, which he claims was made under pressure.

The campaign teams of two other presidential candidates, Oleg Bartsits and Robert Arshba, have expressed concern over the incident.

As of now, there has been no official response from law enforcement authorities or the Central Election Commission regarding the matter.

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