On February 27, 2018, the United National Movement and its supporters held a protest in front of the Government House of Adjara in Batumi. They were protesting former Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili’s removal and relocation of large, decades-old trees from Makhinjauri and Kobuleti to his private dendrological park.

According to Reginfo, the protest took place amid the sound of sirens, and demonstrators held banners reading “Stop Bidzina,” “Let’s Stop Tree Cutting Together,” and “Bidzina the Stink Bug.” The protesters demanded a meeting with the Chairman of the Government of Adjara, Zurab Pataradze.

“Every day we see beautiful places being destroyed — Chakvi, Tsikhisdziri, Kobuleti. When we tell the authorities that we cannot sacrifice the region for Bidzina Ivanishvili’s whims, it’s not enough,” said one of the speakers.

The Government of Adjara responded to the protest on social media, stating that the tree-relocation process did not violate any laws. They also announced plans to monitor and restore the areas from which the trees had been removed for transplantation to Ivanishvili’s dendrological park.

The relocation of the trees continued and did not lead to further large-scale protests.