Tbilisi

Communications Commission Fines “TV Pirveli” 2,500 Lari

On June 25, the National Communications Commission fined “TV Pirveli.” The regulatory body accuses the television station of violating Article 54, Paragraph 5 of the Law on Broadcasting, which carries a fine of 2,500 GEL. The Commission is fining the channel for using terms such as “oligarch,” “Ivanishvili’s regime,” “non-existent crime,” “Georgian Dream’s investigation,” “false witness,” and others.

The first instance of a television station being fined under this rule occurred on May 21, when a 2,500 GEL sanction was imposed on “Formula” TV.

The Media Advocacy Coalition responded to the fines levied against the TV channels, stating: “The Communications Commission is fully cementing its role as an organ of censorship. The Commission continues to enforce repressive legislation.”

According to the Law on Broadcasting, following an initial 2,500 GEL fine, if the violator continues a continuous violation and/or commits a new, one-time violation within one year of being fined, the Commission is authorized to impose a fine of up to 1% of the broadcaster’s annual income (but no less than 5,000 GEL), or initiate public administrative proceedings to suspend its license or authorization.

Prosecutor’s Office Summons “Formula” Journalist Davit Kashishvili for Questioning

The Prosecutor’s Office has summoned “Formula” TV journalist and presenter Davit Kashiashvili for questioning. His summons is connected to a criminal case initiated against “Formula.”

On June 16, 2026, the Investigative Division of the Tbilisi Prosecutor’s Office launched an investigation into an alleged case of false accusation. The case is being investigated under Article 373, Part 1 of the Criminal Code of Georgia. The investigation was triggered by a statement from the lawyers representing film director Giorgi (Goga) Khaindrava, a supporter of “Georgian Dream,” regarding the alleged commission of a crime against Khaindrava by “Formula” TV.

According to reports, the Prosecutor’s Office is alleging a false accusation made by “Formula’s” source.

Parliament Denies “Publika” Photojournalist One-Time Special Accreditation

The Parliament has denied one-time special accreditation to Mindia Gabadze, a photojournalist for the online media outlet “Publika.”

In a corresponding application sent to the Chairman of the Parliament on June 16, 2026, “Publika” requested the issuance of a one-time special accreditation for photojournalist Mindia Gabadze for the period of June 22–26, so that he could cover Irakli Kobakhidze presenting his report in Parliament.

A month earlier, on May 21, the Parliament also revoked the one-year accreditation of four “Publika” reporters, including Mindia Gabadze. At the time, the reason given was that the accredited journalists from “Publika” had not visited the legislative body for ten consecutive weeks.

For the same reason, the accreditation of four journalists from “Monitor” was also revoked.

The tightening of rules for the media in the legislative body began in February 2023. Several security measures were introduced in the Parliament, during which non-accredited journalists are banned from entering the Parliament. Also, it became possible to suspend a journalist’s accreditation based on a Member of Parliament’s request. Furthermore, from January 1, 2026, a new rule for issuing one-time special accreditation came into force, which also created additional barriers for journalists. All these measures have been repeatedly used against journalists.

Lawyer Shota Tutberidze Fined GEL 4,000 over Alleged Insult of MP Nino Tsilosani

Judge Davit Makaradze of Tbilisi City Court fined lawyer Shota Tutberidze GEL 4,000 over the alleged insult of Nino Tsilosani, a Member of Parliament from “Georgian Dream.”

The case concerns a comment left by Shota Tutberidze on Nino Tsilosani’s post of 2 June 2026. The post concerned a visit to Canada. Tutberidze wrote: “Should they insult you there as well, Niniko, or will you just visit the zoo and leave quickly?”

The complaint was not filed by the “Georgian Dream” MP herself. The administrative proceedings were initiated by the Ministry of Internal Affairs’ Division for Combating Hate Speech under Article 173¹⁶(1) of the Code of Administrative Offences, which concerns the verbal insult of a political official.

This is the second publicly reported case handled by the new division. On 11 June, it became known that administrative proceedings had been initiated against musician Maia Darsmelidze over a post concerning Nino Jgharkava, a person affiliated with “Georgian Dream.”

The new division within the Ministry of Internal Affairs became operational on 1 June. According to the Ministry, the division’s main task is to identify statements disseminated in the public space that degrade human dignity or are insulting, and that may contain elements of an administrative offence.

Civil Activist Marine Zhvania Found Liable for an Administrative Offence for Standing on the Sidewalk

Judge Manuchar Tsatsua of Tbilisi City Court found civil activist Marine Zhvania liable for an administrative offence for standing on the sidewalk and issued her a verbal warning.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs alleged that, on 17 December 2025, 69-year-old Marine Zhvania had created an obstruction to pedestrian movement near Parliament. The hearing of the case began in December and was postponed several times. The judge ultimately delivered the decision on 15 June.

Marine Zhvania stated that she had indeed been standing near Parliament and protesting, but had not created any obstruction for passers-by. She did not consider herself liable for an administrative offence.

Musician Maia Darsmelidze Accused of Insulting a Person Affiliated with “Georgian Dream”

Musician Maia Darsmelidze wrote on social media that a court hearing had been scheduled in connection with the alleged insult of Nino Jgharkava, a supporter of “Georgian Dream.” According to Darsmelidze, she was notified about the hearing by the Division for Monitoring Public Communication. “Hurray, I cut the ribbon. The scrolling department contacted me. Jgharka filed a complaint against me and they say they have two screenshots,” the musician wrote.

Nino Jgharkava herself stated that she had not formally filed a complaint against Maia Darsmelidze. “I have just received a call from TV Pirveli asking whether I had sued Maia Darsmelidze over a post. The new division has started working and Ms. Darsmelidze has been summoned to court. I did not go anywhere officially and did not write a complaint. I tagged the Ministry of Internal Affairs here, and the response apparently followed promptly,” Jgharkava wrote.

The court hearing in this case is scheduled for 10 July. According to publicly available information, this is the first case pursued by the new division in relation to a comment made in the public space. The new division within the Ministry of Internal Affairs became operational on 1 June. According to the Ministry, the division’s main task is to identify statements disseminated in the public space that are degrading to human dignity or insulting and that may contain elements of an administrative offence.

Civil Activist Tamuna Giorgadze Subjected to Physical Violence during a Protest Rally

On 6 June, during the protest rally known as the “Saturday March,” civil activist Tamuna Giorgadze was subjected to physical violence by an unidentified person. The alleged assailant was riding a scooter of the courier company “Glovo.” Police officers escorted him away from the area.

In an interview with Batumelebi, Tamuna Giorgadze stated that, before the march began, the same person passed by the protest participants on a scooter and verbally insulted them.

“We were standing near the Philharmonic Hall, waiting for the march to begin. Five of us were standing on the traffic island between the sidewalk and the road. A Glovo courier passed by and insulted us, using offensive language. Levan Zazadze [a photographer] was standing next to me and responded to him. The man then moved to attack, and I tried to stand between them. He first hit Levan in the face, and because I was standing between them, I was hit in the jaw and abdomen as he was swinging his arms,” Giorgadze said.

As a result of the incident, the activist sustained bodily injuries to her face, hand, and abdomen. According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, an investigation has been initiated under Article 126 of the Criminal Code, which concerns violence.

Civil Activist Zura Menteshashvili Found Criminally Liable for Repeated Blocking of a Roadway

On 29 May, Judge Nino Galustashvili of Tbilisi City Court sentenced 61-year-old activist Zurab Menteshashvili to nine months of imprisonment in a criminal case initiated over the blocking of a roadway. As Menteshashvili has been in detention since 1 November of last year, he is expected to leave prison on 1 August, in two months.

Zurab Menteshashvili was detained on 31 October in Tbilisi, on Rustaveli Avenue, for blocking the street. Since he had previously been held administratively liable on the same grounds, the Ministry of Internal Affairs initiated a criminal case against him. He is the first and, so far, the sole activist against whom a case has been initiated under the Criminal Code for blocking a roadway.

He was subjected to the law adopted by “Georgian Dream” under an expedited procedure, according to which the “artificial blocking” of a roadway or being present at a rally “wearing a face mask” is punishable by up to 15 days of detention, and, in the event of repetition, by imprisonment for up to one year.

Bank Account of Civil Activist Nino Kalandia’s 13-Year-Old Child with a Disability Subjected to Seizure

Civil activist Nino Kalandia says that the pension account of her 13-year-old child with a disability has been subjected to seizure. The seizure was based on fines imposed on Nino Kalandia herself in connection with her participation in protest rallies, on the grounds of blocking a roadway.

“Yesterday, I received a message from Liberty Bank saying that I had some debt. I could not understand what debt I could have had. Today, I went to Liberty Bank to clarify the matter and was told that the account had been seized,” Nino Kalandia told Publika.

Parliament Amends Election Procedures for Public Broadcaster’s Board of trustees

The Parliament of Georgia is reviewing amendments to its Rules of Procedure under an accelerated procedure. One of the key issues concerns the article regulating the election of members to the Public Broadcaster’s Board of Trustees. According to Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili, if a vacancy opens on the board, the entity

holding the quota for that vacant seat will directly select its preferred candidate and present them to the Parliament for consideration. According to the Georgian Law on Broadcasting, the Public Broadcaster’s Board of Trustees consists of 11 members. Parliament elects the trustees based on the following nominations: Two nominated by the Public Defender. Three nominated by the parliamentary majority. Three nominated by the parliamentary opposition. Three nominated by the Supreme Council of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara.

Under the current regulations, candidates for the Board of Trustees are selected through an open competition announced by the Speaker of Parliament. A 9-member commission is formed to shortlist candidates and present them to the authorized entities. From this shortlist, the entities then select nominees to present to the Parliament.

Papuashvili argues that this regulation is “absurd” because the legislative body cannot establish its own procedures without external interference. Therefore, he believes the election procedure must be brought closer to the core principle of parliamentary democracy: parliamentary sovereignty.

“The proposal is as follows: establish a procedure where, if there is a vacancy within an entity’s quota, that entity can select [a candidate] however it wishes. It can hold a competition or do whatever it wants—whether it’s the majority, the opposition, the Public Defender, or the Autonomous Republic of Adjara. But in its relationship with the Parliament, this entity must present a single candidate. It should say, ‘Here is a vacancy, I have the right to nominate a candidate, and I am nominating this specific person,’ rather than being handed three candidates pre-selected by others and being told to pick one of them,” stated Papuashvili.

According to Papuashvili, the nominated candidate will first be evaluated by the Sector Economy Committee before being put to a vote at a plenary session. Parliament plans to fast-track these amendments and adopt them during the current session week.

The Media Advocacy Coalition assesses these changes as creating additional risks for media freedom, transparency, and institutional independence. “This decision further reduces transparency and strengthens the risk of undue influence over the Public Broadcaster, which has been under the influence of ‘Georgian Dream’ for years, and whose management persecutes independent and professional journalists,” the coalition noted in its statement.