On December 12, 2025, “Georgian Dream” adopted another repressive legislative amendment restricting the freedom of assembly, which was considered under an expedited procedure within three days. Since December 2024, “Georgian Dream” has amended the legislation regulating assemblies and demonstrations five times. Each time, the amendments have become increasingly repressive, aiming both to punish demonstrators and to intimidate them preventively.
The legislative changes were introduced into the Law of Georgia “On Assemblies and Demonstrations” and the Code of Administrative Offenses. The amendments significantly strengthen the Ministry of Internal Affairs’ control over assemblies and demonstrations. Under the new rules, organizers are obliged to notify the Ministry of Internal Affairs in advance not only when the action will block transport routes but also when the assembly will take place on pedestrian areas. This obligation applies even to spontaneous gatherings, and the notification must be addressed to the Ministry of Internal Affairs rather than the municipality. In addition, the Ministry is authorized to issue binding instructions regarding changes to the location, time, or route of the demonstration.
When a pedestrian area is blocked en masse, the Ministry of Internal Affairs is authorized to give participants a 15-minute deadline to vacate the area, after which the assembly may be declared unlawful and dispersed. Compliance with this requirement within the given timeframe does not exempt participants from legal liability. Violations are punishable by administrative detention of up to 15 days (up to 20 days for organizers), and repeated violations may result in criminal liability.
The Social Justice Center assesses these legislative amendments as a new stage in the criminalization of the freedom of assembly. According to the organization, restricting gatherings on sidewalks and pedestrian areas constitutes an unconstitutional and unjustified limitation on the right to peaceful assembly. They also state that the goal of the adopted amendments is the effective prohibition of all assemblies.
The legislative changes adopted by “Georgian Dream” have significantly restricted the freedom of assembly and expression for both citizens and journalists. On multiple occasions, journalists have been detained under repressive legislation, including in cases where they were performing their professional duties.
On 30 November 2025, the pro-government television station Imedi aired yet another report aimed at discrediting the “Light Media” platform.
The title of the segment broadcast on Imedi resembled that of a report called “Foreign Intelligence Services’ Media Network,” which aired on 23 November. In that earlier report, without presenting any evidence, it was repeatedly claimed that various media outlets were operating in the interests of “foreign intelligence services,” allegedly receiving 17,434,381 million GEL in funding for this purpose.
The Speaker of Parliament from the Georgian Dream party, Shalva Papuashvili, spoke about so-called “black money,” accusing independent media outlets of supposedly acting according to a “plan drafted by foreign intelligence services,” alongside other similar schemes, and of opposing “national interest” projects initiated by Georgian Dream.
“Light Media” is a coalition of 22 independent online media outlets, including:
“Light Media” was formed after legislative regulations adopted by Georgian Dream placed media organizations in a difficult situation. Specifically, laws passed in the spring restrict media outlets from receiving grants, label them as organizations “carrying out the interests of a foreign power,” and expose them to the risk of criminal prosecution. The media outlets decided to unite and appeal to the public for financial support.
On November 24, the Speaker of Parliament from “Georgian Dream,” Shalva Papuashvili, issued a statement against “Radio Liberty” and said that the media outlet was created by the “Central Intelligence Agency.” He also called the journalists “propagandists.”
“Radio Liberty is media?! It was created by the Central Intelligence Agency. It is an organization created by an intelligence service, funded by the U.S. budget. The current U.S. government stopped its funding because it said they are a tool of propaganda.”
At the same press conference, Papuashvili spoke in detail about a report aired on the pro-government channel “Imedi,” against “Light Media.” According to Papuashvili, independent online media “put criminal energy into their work and commit criminal offenses, including tax evasion and other types of crimes.”
On November 24, the Speaker of Parliament from “Georgian Dream,” Shalva Papuashvili, accused the online media outlet “Mtis Ambebi” of hiding finances. He said that donors, by funding “Mtis Ambebi,” are financing xenophobia. This is how Shalva Papuashvili responded to a question from a pro-government television station about “Mtis Ambebi.” The journalist was asking Papuashvili about “Mtis Ambebi’s” coverage of the Eagle Hills project. Eagle Hills has been presented by the “Georgian Dream” government as an unprecedented, multimillion-dollar project.
Shalva Papuashvili frequently makes disinformative statements against independent online media. Among them, he actively refers to “Mtis Ambebi,” “Netgazeti/Batumelebi,” and “Publika” in a negative context.
On November 24, the Prime Minister of Georgian Dream, Irakli Kobakhidze, stated that “associations funded from foreign countries are acting against the development of our country.”
He was responding to a report aired on Imedi’s Week on November 23, in which the pro-government media disseminated a disinformation piece against Light Media, a coalition of 22 independent online media outlets, referring to the media as “agents of foreign intelligence services” and accusing them of receiving funding through illegal means.
According to Irakli Kobakhidze, the goal of these media outlets is to “disrupt the processes of economic development.”
Before Irakli Kobakhidze commented on the report aired on the pro-government channel, the Speaker of Parliament, Shalva Papuashvili, had already responded.
The Speaker of Parliament from “Georgian Dream“, Shalva Papuashvili, responded to a report aired on the pro-government TV channel Imedi targeting the association of independent online media outlets, Light Media, attempting to discredit and intimidate them.
Shalva Papuashvili said that online media outlets are bypassing the law and accused them of committing “criminal” offenses.
“[Online media outlets] invent schemes to circumvent legislation, and part of this scheme involves violating restrictions when money moves undeclared across the territory of Georgia. Therefore, of course, attention must be paid to all of this. Those whose competence this falls under are monitoring these processes. Wherever they detect signs of a crime, there will be an appropriate response,” said Shalva Papuashvili.
On November 23, the pro-government TV channel Imedi aired a propagandistic report against Light Media. Light Media is a coalition of 22 independent online media outlets formed after laws and legislative changes adopted by the Georgian Dream parliament placed online media in a dire situation. The report broadcast on Imedi, aimed at discrediting these outlets, claimed that the media were supposedly working on the orders of “foreign intelligence services” and were engaged in “anti-state” activities.
On November 23, a segment aired on the pro-government television channel “Imedi” aimed at discrediting the platform “Sinatle Media.” “Sinatle Media” is an association of 21 independent online media outlets, created after legislative regulations passed by “Georgian Dream” placed media organizations in a difficult position. Specifically, laws passed in the spring restrict media from receiving grants, label them as conduits for “foreign forces,” and create the threat of criminal prosecution. The media outlets decided to form an association and request financial support from the public.
The title of the “Imedi” segment was “Foreign Intelligence Media Network.” The program’s host, Irakli Chikhladze, claimed that “it has been analyzed how foreign intelligence agencies operate with secret scenarios,” during which the aforementioned media outlets were portrayed as part of this scenario. In the subsequent 15-minute segment, it was repeatedly claimed, without evidence, that the media outlets had received 17 million GEL in funding.
“Sinatle Media” responded to the disinformation segment aired on the pro-government channel with the following statement:
“Due to the segment prepared by ‘Imedi’ television, where Russian disinformation narratives and obvious lies deliberately fabricated by local propagandists are intertwined, we are submitting a joint statement to the self-regulatory body and demand a denial of the false information aired in the segment. We also demand live airtime to give us the opportunity to respond to these absurd accusations.”
According to the Young Lawyers’ Association of Georgia (GYLA), the eyesight condition of Mzia Amaghlobeli, founder of “Batumelebi” and “Netgazeti,” is at an alarming level. The organization notes that Mzia Amaghlobeli has not undergone the necessary examinations and, to date, has not received proper consultation from a doctor, which is essential for maintaining eyesight and planning treatment.
“In 2025, before being placed in the penitentiary institution, her eyesight in the right eye was approximately 30% (0.3), which could have increased up to 90% with corrective glasses. After being placed in prison, her eyesight deteriorated alarmingly. According to examinations conducted on February 4, 2025, her right eye’s eyesight could be corrected with glasses to approximately 60%, but a repeated examination two days later showed that Mzia Amaghlobeli’s eyesight in the right eye had dropped to 0.1 (a 20% decrease in two days), and correction with glasses was now possible only up to 40%, instead of the 90% before imprisonment,” the statement released by GYLA reads.
According to the Young Lawyers’ Association of Georgia, in July 2025, lawyers requested that the prison administration provide Mzia Amaghlobeli with the necessary examinations at the medical institutions she had visited prior to her arrest, where her patient history was kept. This request was denied by the penitentiary service, after which the journalist’s eyesight was examined at a clinic chosen by the prison administration.
“Despite medical assessments that clearly show the alarming deterioration of Mzia Amaghlobeli’s eyesight during her time in prison, the penitentiary institution has not taken any effective measures to arrange adequate examinations and appropriate treatment, nor has the cause of such dramatic deterioration in eyesight been determined,” the statement said.
On August 6, Mzia Amaghlobeli was sentenced by the Batumi City Court to two years in prison. The decision was upheld by the Kutaisi Court of Appeals.
On November 24, the Tbilisi City Court dismissed the case of Mzia Amaghlobeli, founder of “Batumelebi” and “Netgazeti,” against the Georgian Dream Prime Minister, Irakli Kobakhidze. In the lawsuit, Mzia Amaghlobeli sought a denial from Irakli Kobakhidze of the false accusations he made about her.
In July 2025, through pro-government television channels “Imedi” and “Adjara TV,” Georgian Dream Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze stated about the imprisoned journalist Mzia Amaghlobeli that she had slapped the then Batumi Police Chief, Irakli Dgebuadze, on the orders of “foreign powers.”
The judge ruled that Irakli Kobakhidze’s statement was made within the context of political debate.
After the hearing, Mzia Amaghlobeli’s lawyer, Ana Rekhviashvili, said: “Such a decision in a case like this is a dangerous precedent for Georgian justice, as the court has opened the way for political officeholders and told them that they can make any statement, spread any falsehood, and political officeholders will not be held accountable for spreading such falsehoods.”
On November 24, the Parliament suspended the accreditation of Dea Badzagua, a journalist for the investigative program “Shabatis Formula” of the TV “Formula,” for one month. The suspension of accreditation was requested by the “Georgian Dream” MP Maia Bitadze.
A report aired on “Shabatis Formula” [at 18:41 and 20:02], showing Dea Badzagua trying to ask questions to “Georgian Dream” MP Aluda Gghudushauri regarding the case initiated against the chairman of the party “For Georgia,” Giorgi Gakharia. The interview was recorded by phone by Parliament member Maia Bitadze from “Georgian Dream.” According to the journalist on “Formula,” she did not even have questions for Maia Bitadze, but the MP became irritated by listening to questions directed at her colleague.
“It is noteworthy that she [Maia Bitadze] immediately threatened us with sanctions and, apparently, carried them out… Representatives of ‘Georgian Dream’ in the parliamentary body do not answer any questions from critical media,” said journalist Dea Badzagua on “Formula.”
On November 13, another journalist from “Formula,” Tiko Eradze, had her accreditation suspended after she published a video shot in the parliamentary plenary hall, where she filmed “Georgian Dream” MP Eka Chichinadze from the journalists’ designated gallery, while the MP was watching the video recording on her phone.
