On March 25, 2026, Monitor published an investigative report stating that they were unable to interview Member of the Georgian Parliament Zaal Dugladze because the Parliament refused to issue a special entry pass for their journalist.

“We were unable to go to the Parliament of Georgia and pose questions to a Member of Parliament. According to the new rules, before entering the Parliament, it is necessary to specify a concrete reason to obtain a special pass. When they learned that we wanted to record an interview with Zaal Dugladze, the Parliament refused to issue the pass,” the Monitor investigation states.

Monitor first applied to the Parliament for a special pass on February 17, and again on February 19. In both instances, the pass was denied. No explanation for the refusal was provided to the outlet.

A new rule for issuing one-day special accreditations came into effect on January 1, 2026. Under this rule, the Head of the Staff makes a decision regarding the issuance of special accreditation no later than five working days after receiving the application. This one-day special accreditation is a mechanism that allows journalists who do not hold permanent parliamentary accreditation to enter the Parliament building and carry out professional activities for a specific purpose. According to these special rules, an application must be submitted to the Speaker of the Parliament, specifying the exact reason for the request. Previously, no such requirement existed in the law.

The imposition of restrictions on journalists within the Parliament building by “Georgian Dream” began on February 6, 2023, when the initial media accreditation rules for the Parliament of Georgia were first approved.