Georgians angered after informal leader Ivanishvili makes first public appearance since coronavirus outbreak – in TikTok video

On April 21, the leader of the ruling Georgian Dream party, former Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili, appeared in public for the first time since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic and declaration of a state of emergency,

The public was angered by the form in which he appeared at such a difficult time for the country.

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His son, musician Bera Ivanishvili, posted a short video with his father on the social media network Tik-Tok. The clip is called “Secret handshake with my father”, it was shot in the courtyard of their house in Tbilisi.

A few hours before this video was made public, it was announced at a special briefing that the state of emergency in Georgia would be extended until May 23.

A state of emergency in Georgia was announced on March 21.

There is a curfew throughout the country – from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m.

Ivanishvili has not spoken and or appeared in the media space since the start of the pandemic.

All this caused outrage in society, followed by a flurry of caustic remarks on social media.