**Pardoned Russian Protester Placed in Migration Custody in Tbilisi**
*Date: 31 August 2026*
*Location: Tbilisi, Georgia*
Denis Kulanin, a Russian citizen who was pardoned by Georgian President Mikheil Kavelashvili on 27 August 2026, has been transferred to a temporary accommodation centre operated by the Interior Ministry’s Migration Department. His legal representatives have warned that the authorities may initiate deportation proceedings against him.
### Background
Kulanin was arrested during anti‑government demonstrations in Tbilisi in the spring of 2025. In June 2025 a Tbilisi court sentenced him to two years’ imprisonment on charges that included alleged damage to a police vehicle. On 27 August 2026, President Kavelashvili granted pardons to 226 individuals, including Kulanin, as part of a broader clemency initiative.
### Current Detention Status
Following his release, Kulanin was placed in the migration department’s temporary accommodation centre. A court order on 30 August 2026 stipulated that he remain in migration custody “until the grounds for detention are eliminated or his deportation procedure is completed.”
Kulanin’s lawyers contend that he should be permitted to leave Georgia voluntarily for a third country. They submitted a plane ticket for a flight scheduled on 1 September 2026 at 12:40 p.m. as evidence of his readiness to depart. However, the case manager of the Migration Department reportedly indicated that Kulanin cannot leave the country until the Tbilisi City Court rules on his deportation request. According to defense lawyer Tsiala Ratiani, the case manager did not retain either the boarding pass or Kulanin’s Russian passport.
Ratiani stated on Facebook: “Denis Kulanin cannot voluntarily leave Georgia until the Tbilisi City Court rules on the matter of his deportation from Georgia. This position violates his right to voluntarily leave the territory of Georgia and contradicts the practice of the Migration Department, which normally allows foreigners awaiting deportation to depart voluntarily.”
### Reactions and Related Cases
Supporters gathered outside the Migration Department on the morning of 1 September 2026, urging officials to release Kulanin for his scheduled flight. In a letter published by the newspaper *Publika*, Kulanin expressed regret over signing a document in July 2025 that he later learned was a pardon request, and he voiced concern that he might be deported to Russia.
The situation has been compared to a recent case involving Hungarian journalist László Róbert Mézes, who was detained by migration authorities in Tbilisi in August 2026. Mézes’s lawyers reported that he was allowed to leave Georgia voluntarily before a deportation‑related court hearing.
### Legal Context
Georgia’s migration law permits foreign nationals who are subject to deportation to leave the country voluntarily, provided that certain procedural requirements are met. The defense team for Kulanin argues that this provision should apply to his case, especially given his expressed desire to depart for a third country and the lack of a finalized deportation order.
### Next Steps
The Tbilisi City Court is expected to consider the pending deportation request for Kulanin. Until a ruling is issued, Kulanin remains in migration custody. His legal counsel continues to advocate for his right to leave Georgia voluntarily, citing both domestic legal provisions and precedent from comparable cases.
Article and image source: civil.ge
