On February 9, 2021, representatives of various social groups held a protest at the Government of Adjara. They were demanding a meeting with the Chairman of the Government, Tornike Rizhvadze. Initially, Rizhvadze was willing to meet the protesters, but after they insisted that journalists also attend the meeting, the request was denied, according to one of the organizers, Tamaz Bakuradze.

On February 15, even more people gathered. The protesters stated that different social groups, each with their own problems, united and presented their demands to the local authorities collectively. Among the protesters was Marina Beridze, representing the interests of those living in the so-called “Dream Town,” an informal settlement where more than 1,700 families were living illegally. According to a local government decision, social housing would initially be built only for about 600 families. Marina Beridze said that all families demanded guaranteed housing and the establishment of fair selection criteria.

The protest also included Georgian citizens who had been self-employed in Turkey and lost their jobs when the Georgia–Turkey border was closed due to the pandemic in March of the previous year. Madona Shainidze said that before the pandemic, she had worked for nine years in a shop near the Turkish border — crossing into Turkey in the morning and returning home in the evening. She said she received the 300 GEL government compensation only once after losing her job. She participated in the protest on behalf of hundreds of self-employed individuals and demanded the reopening of the Georgia–Turkey border.

Residents of the village of Kirnati (Khelvachauri municipality) also took part in the protest. They demanded the compensation that had been promised to them in exchange for their land. Locals had to give up their land due to the construction of a hydroelectric power station. According to the villagers, only partial compensation was paid to more than 80 families for thousands of square meters of land. The residents of Kirnati said that for more than a year, they had been asking the local government to set up a state commission to study the case. They were promised that such a commission would be created, but until 2021, no commission existed.

Protesters claimed that the government lied to them at every meeting, so they demanded the meeting be broadcast live. The protest was dispersed by the end of the day. Demonstrators gave the Government of Adjara a 10-day deadline. If the Chairman did not meet with activists representing the united social demands, citizens planned to resume the protest. However, no later media reports could be found regarding either a meeting or continuation of the protest.