On June 2, it was revealed that 14 employees had been dismissed from the Public Broadcaster’s Adjara TV and Radio under the pretext of a so-called “reorganization.”
Among those fired are five journalists: Irina Kurua, host of the program “Satkmeli”; Maia Merkviladze, head of radio news; and journalists Teona Kharabadze, Levan Uridia, and Salome Gegeshidze. They all received their termination emails simultaneously on June 2. The emails stated that their employment contracts were being severed as part of the reorganization announced at the television station.
In an interview with the publication “Batumelebi”, Irina Kurua linked her dismissal to an attempt to suppress critical voices at the channel: “I haven’t heard a single argument explaining why my show was canceled. The email simply stated that there was no place for the program “Satkmeli” in the new broadcasting grid developed as a result of optimization. I believe they just don’t want critical opinions to be broadcast on television, as viewers regularly heard diverse and critical perspectives on this show.”
Maia Merkviladze also connects her dismissal to her critical stance toward the government:”I am interested in hearing the director’s arguments; otherwise, I have my own and I know exactly why they might have terminated our cooperation. Even though my recent health condition has prevented me from being fully active, I still believe all of this is tied to my critical attitude toward the government.”
Media advocacy organizations assess the dismissal of these journalists as a deliberate attempt to stifle critical opinion. “This is not the first instance of independent voices being marginalized at ‘Adjara TV and Radio’ and within the Public Broadcaster as a whole. Over recent years, a number of similar incidents have occurred, pointing to a consistent erosion of editorial independence by the broadcaster’s management and its subordination to political influence,” the Media Advocacy Coalition noted in its statement.
The Georgian Charter of Journalistic Ethics echoed these concerns: “These dismissals are nothing more than an attempt to drain the Adjara Public Broadcaster of critical thought. This selective, biased approach toward journalists serves the ultimate goal of clearing the information field in Adjara.”
Much like the situation at Adjara TV, firing critical journalists has also become a recurring practice at the Public Broadcaster’s First Channel. Over the past year and a half, management has dismissed numerous journalists who expressed criticism of the First Channel’s editorial policy, or has employed various other punitive measures against them
