Russian civic activist and convicted person Anastasia Zinovkina, detained in connection with pro-European protests, has been transferred to a closed-type penitentiary institution, and the number of telephone calls and family visits permitted to her has been restricted. According to her lawyer, Daria Samodurova, Anastasia Zinovkina had been held in a semi-open penitentiary facility since 12 September 2025. The transfer was ordered on the basis of a decision dated 15 January 2026, which cites a “classified hearing record” as its legal ground. Accordingly, the specific reasons for the change in the type of penitentiary institution applied to Anastasia Zinovkina remain undisclosed. The order of the Director General of the Special Penitentiary Service, circulated by the defense, states that Anastasia Zinovkina is classified as a “convicted person posing an increased security risk.” The lawyer has indicated that the 15 January order will be appealed in the near future.Anastasia Zinovkina is a citizen of the Russian Federation and a participant in protests opposing Vladimir Putin. She arrived in Georgia in late 2022. On 17 December 2024, she was detained together with her friend Artem Gribul.
The Prosecutor’s Office charged them with possession of 16 grams of narcotic substances, and both were sentenced to eight years and six months of imprisonment. Anastasia Zinovkina and Artem Gribul participated in pro-European protests in Tbilisi, where they provided demonstrators with hot beverages. According to them, this activity became the basis for their detention. Anastasia Zinovkina has a serious health condition and accuses the prison administration of failure to provide adequate medical care.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs has initiated criminal prosecution against civic activist Kakha Mikaia, a former member of the Political Council of Georgian Dream, and his son, Konstantine Mikaia, in connection with standing on a sidewalk. In an interview with TV Pirveli, Kakha Mikaia stated: “I received a decision stating that, following amendments to certain provisions of the Administrative Offences Code, the case has been transferred to criminal proceedings. This was expected from the current authorities.”
Father and son Kakha and Konstantine Mikaia are active participants in the protests on Rustaveli Avenue. Both had previously been subjected to administrative detention on the grounds of allegedly blocking a roadway. On 21 October 2025, Judge Nino Enukidze sentenced Kakha Mikaia, who had been detained during a protest on allegations of unlawfully blocking a roadway, to 14 days of administrative detention. On the same day, Konstantine Mikaia was also sentenced to 14 days of administrative detention. Prior to that, on 17 September 2025, Konstantine Mikaia had been detained for 10 days for non-payment of a fine.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs has been accusing individuals of obstructing citizens’ movement for protests expressed on sidewalks since Georgian Dream adopted another repressive legislative amendment restricting freedom of assembly on 12 December 2025, which in fact banned protests on sidewalks. Under the amended legal framework, a first violation is punishable by administrative detention for up to 15 days (up to 20 days for organizers), while a repeated violation may give rise to criminal liability.
On the same grounds, the court has, to date, referred the cases of three civic activists to the Ministry of Internal Affairs for further action: Vazha Gaprindashvili, Giorgi Tsulaia, and Ana Bdeiani.
The bank accounts of civic activist Elene Devidze, a participant in pro-European protests, have been subject to enforcement seizure. She disclosed this information via social media. In an interview with the outlet Publika, she stated that the enforcement measure was imposed in connection with an outstanding administrative fine.
According to available information, Elene Devidze was subjected to an administrative fine in the amount of GEL 5,000 on 10 August 2025 on the grounds of the alleged blocking of a roadway. The activist reports that she was not duly notified of the imposition of the fine, as her contact number was incorrectly recorded by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and the administrative offense report was not personally served on her. Elene Devidze has stated her intention to challenge the fine through legal remedies.
Elene Devidze is the sister of Mate Devidze, a convicted prisoner of conscience. Mate Devidze was detained on 19 November 2024 during a protest against the results of the parliamentary elections on charges of assault on a police officer and was subsequently sentenced to four years and six months of imprisonment~
Tbilisi City Court Judge Tornike Kapanadze terminated the administrative proceedings instituted against civic activist Ana Bdeiani and referred the case materials to the Ministry of Internal Affairs for further action. According to lawyer Marika Arevadze, the judge noted in the reasoned decision that the case may contain elements of a criminal offense.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs alleges that Ana Bdeiani, a mother of three, artificially obstructed a sidewalk. The administrative offense report was issued pursuant to Article 174¹, Part 10 of the Administrative Offences Code of Georgia. Ana Bdeiani had previously been subjected to administrative liability on 4 November 2025 on the grounds of the alleged artificial obstruction of a roadway.
Since Georgian Dream adopted another repressive legislative amendment restricting freedom of assembly on 12 December 2025, the Ministry of Internal Affairs has been initiating proceedings against civic activists for obstructing citizens’ movement in connection with protests expressed on sidewalks, which the amended legislation in fact banned. Under the amended legal framework, a first violation is punishable by administrative detention for a term of up to 15 days (up to 20 days for organizers), while a repeated violation may give rise to criminal liability.
On the same grounds, the court has, to date, referred for further action to the Ministry of Internal Affairs the cases of two civic activists – Vazha Gaprindashvili and Giorgi Tsulaia.
On 14 January 2026, civic activist Nutsa Mkharadze was detained during a solidarity protest in support of the Iranian people held outside the Iranian Embassy in Tbilisi. The Ministry of Internal Affairs accuses Nutsa Mkharadze of disobedience to a lawful order of the police and verbal insult.
According to Radio Tavisupleba prior to Nutsa Mkharadze’s detention, demonstrators expressed their protest by crossing from one side of the road to the other at the traffic light located near the Iranian Embassy when the green signal was illuminated. Subsequently, as the police explained, the “traffic light malfunctioned,” and Mkharadze began crossing the roadway precisely at that moment.
A court hearing in Nutsa Mkharadze’s case was held on 16 January, during the hearing, her health condition deteriorated. Nutsa Mkharadze alleges ill-treatment while held in a temporary detention isolator, stating: “I lost consciousness twice and experienced convulsions. I am experiencing panic attacks due to my emotional condition, although I had not experienced such symptoms previously. I was held in the isolator for two days without being permitted to wash and was unlawfully detained, which likely affected my condition.” The next court hearing is scheduled for 27 January.
Pursuant to the amendments introduced to the Administrative Offences Code of Georgia, disobedience to a lawful order of a police officer (Article 173, Part 1) is punishable by a fine in the amount of GEL 2,000 to GEL 5,000 or administrative detention for a period of up to 60 days. Verbal insult of a law enforcement officer, including the use of abusive language (Article 173, Part 2), is punishable by a fine in the amount of GEL 2,000 to GEL 5,000 or administrative detention for a period of up to 60 days.
Tbilisi City Court Judge Ekaterine Eliadze has dismissed the lawsuit filed against the Public Broadcaster by Nino Zautashvili, a journalist and presenter who was fired from the channel.
According to Zautashvili’s lawyer, Giorgi Iasashvili, they were seeking to have the dismissal order annulled and for her to be reinstated to her position.
“I know I will see this case through to the end, and I won’t begrudge the time or energy it takes. I know for a fact that I am right, and the judge knew the truth was on my side as well. In these incredibly difficult times, when so many unjust decisions have been made, the primary and most vital task remains ensuring the institutional independence of the judiciary,” Nino Zautashvili told Mediachecker.
The Tbilisi City Court also dismissed a lawsuit filed by Vasil Ivanov-Chikovani, a former presenter for the news program Moambe, who was also seeking to overturn his dismissal from the Public Broadcaster. This decision was later upheld by the Court of Appeals.
The Public Broadcaster dismissed Nino Zautashvili, the host of the program Real Space, along with Vasil Ivanov-Chikovani, on April 11, 2025.
On April 15, according to TV Pirveli, the bank accounts of Maka Chikhladze, a journalist for the channel’s Saturday broadcast, were frozen. On social media, Irakli Datunashvili (known online as Leo Nafta), the Georgia editor for the online publication JamNews, also wrote that his bank accounts had been frozen. According to his information, the basis for the freeze is cited as a fine from October 15, the existence of which he had not been informed of until now.
According to Nodar Meladze, head of the news service, Maka Chikhladze was covering ongoing events on Rustaveli Avenue in the line of professional duty on October 15, 2025, which led to her being fined 5,000 GEL on charges of “artificially blocking the road.” He stated that the journalist was not notified of this fine and subsequently had her accounts frozen.
Maka Chikhladze herself states that she only learned about the existence of the fine after her accounts were frozen.
“In such a large agency as the Ministry of Internal Affairs, they couldn’t find the resources to send me a single SMS… if they had simply notified me that I had been fined, I would have looked into it and proven that I was performing my professional duties. I didn’t know about it until my accounts were frozen,” Chikhladze said.
In her assessment, the case may be related to her journalistic activities. “I believe this is an act of revenge and has nothing to do with the law on assembly and manifestation or any actual violation,” she noted. Chikhladze also points out that representatives of other media outlets were also working at the scene, yet she was the only one targeted with a fine.
On December 7, 2024, on Besiki Street in Tbilisi, TV Pirveli journalist Maka Chikhladze and cameraman Giorgi Shetsiruli were attacked and physically assaulted by unidentified masked individuals while working on a live broadcast. The investigation launched into that incident has not yet been concluded.
According to TV Formula, journalist Davit Chabashvili is being threatened with death. Media reports indicate that the journalist has been receiving threatening messages from an individual identified as Gia Kikolashvili-Chanturia. Reportedly, the person behind the threats is also aware of the journalist’s home address.
“For what you say, for your work, and for what you write, you will be beheaded,” reads one of the threatening messages.
Davit Chabashvili links the incident to his professional activities. He stated that the threatening messages and phone calls have been ongoing for about a week. According to Formula, an investigation has been launched under Article 151 of the Criminal Code of Georgia (Threat), and the journalist has already been questioned.
The Charter of Journalistic Ethics responded to the incident, calling on the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia to ensure the journalist’s safety and to investigate the matter promptly. The Charter stated that such attacks on journalists are fueled by aggressive rhetoric from high-ranking officials toward independent media. It called on officials to realize the consequences of using hate speech and to change their approach accordingly.
The Communications Commission has issued written warnings to four television stations, including two pro-government channels, for violating the Law of Georgia on Broadcasting. The channels involved are the government-critical outlets Formula and TV Pirveli, as well as pro-government broadcasters POSTV and Imedi. The Commission issued the warnings based on violations of articles concerning content regulation.
According to ComCom, the issue was placed on the agenda following its own media monitoring. The stations were accused of failing to meet standards regarding impartiality, balance, reporting based on personal attitudes/opinions, and factual accuracy. For instance, the Commission determined that by using phrases such as “Dream’s Prosecutor’s Office,” “Dream’s Parliament,” “Ivanishvili’s Prime Minister,” “Rajden Kuprashvili’s agency,” “with members of the Dream government,” and “judicial clan,” Formula covered issues based on the broadcaster’s personal attitude or opinion in its news programming, thereby violating the law.
During the monitoring process, ComCom’s Media Services Regulation Department “discovered” the highest number of potential violations at the independent channels—20 for Formula and 18 for TV Pirveli. The lowest number of violations were attributed to the pro-government outlets: Imedi (4 violations), which has been sanctioned for spreading Russian disinformation, and POSTV (7 violations).
On this occasion, the Communications Commission limited its response to written warnings on the grounds that none of these television stations had been sanctioned for similar violations within the past year.
It is worth noting that in early March, following the sanctioning of pro-government Imedi and POSTV, ComCom released a threatening statement announcing it would begin monitoring broadcaster content starting in March. Last year, Georgian Dream passed repressive amendments to the Law on Broadcasting, which are linked to the regulation of broadcaster content.
The bank accounts of TV Formula journalist Liza Tsitsishvili have been frozen. According to the journalist, it was discovered that she had been fined 5,000 GEL on the grounds of “artificially blocking the road” while performing her professional duties on Rustaveli Avenue on September 10, 2025.
The journalist had not received any notice regarding the fine. Furthermore, she states that since September, she has been detained once and has even crossed the national border, yet in neither instance was she informed that she had been fined.
According to publicly available information, more than 40 fines have been issued against journalists for “artificially blocking the road” between October 26, 2024, and the present day.
