“I will not bow before this regime… I will not play by its rules. I am on hunger strike. There is something bigger than life – it is freedom,” prominent Georgian journalist Maziya Amaglobeli said from her cell in a regional prison. Wrote Batumi city.
Amaglobeli, the founder of news outlets Batumlebi and Netgazeti, was arrested in January on charges of “assaulting a police officer” amid ongoing anti-government protests. The journalist will now have to face 4-7 years in jail.
Amaglobeli and his team of freelance journalists have been reporting on violent police crackdowns during October’s parliamentary elections and the ongoing protests across the country following the ruling party’s decision to halt EU integration.
Several voting irregularities documented by election monitors have led many in the country to suspect the ruling Georgian Dream party of manipulating the voting results in its favor. However, the party strongly denies that the violations influenced the election results. Opponents believe the party is gravitating towards Moscow, while the overwhelming majority of Georgians see their future in the EU.
“Today, it’s me. Tomorrow, it could be anyone who dares to dream of a just, democratic, European Georgia – untouched by Russian influence, free of oppression. Fight while there’s still time,” Jailed The journalist warned from behind bars.
‘Our only weapon for battle is the truth’
Tensions reached a peak in January during protests in the seaside city of Batumi, when about 10 people were arrested for putting up stickers saying “Georgia is going on strike.” In a show of solidarity, Amaglobeli did the same and was arrested, but later released, but was arrested again when he slapped one of the policemen who surrounded him and his colleagues. Killed.
“It was a provocation. The police were cursing us, insulting us. One must ask the question: What did the policemen do to provoke this reaction?” said Aitor Turadze, a colleague who was present at the time of the altercation.
Social media footage of the incident shows Batumi police chief Irakli Dagebudze dragging Mizia Amaglobeli into a police vehicle while making sexually offensive remarks. As Amaglobeli’s colleagues told DW, after the arrest Degbuadze attempted to break into a room to physically attack the journalist, but was soon stopped. It is believed that Amglobeli was spat in the face by a policeman and was denied access to water and toilets for several hours after being detained.
“I know that the forces that are fighting us are very strong and ruthless. But our entry into totalitarianism is not yet complete. They must first kill the independent media. Our only means of fighting is the truth,” Turadze told DW. ”
Deadly attack on opposition party leader
Amid the political turmoil, opposition politicians have also faced increasing violence and intimidation.
Last week, Giorgi Gakharia, Georgia’s former prime minister and now opposition party leader, was brutally beaten at the Batumi Sheraton Hotel and later hospitalized. The opposition has accused the ruling party of orchestrating the attacks by armed groups. In turn, authorities have accused Gakharia of instigating a fight in the hotel lobby.
The hotel is facing protests as members of the opposition party have demanded the release of surveillance footage, although to no avail. Now, they are accusing the hotel management of “collusion”.
The national confrontation, already heated, entered a new phase last November when opposition parties renounced their parliamentary mandate, accusing Georgian Dream of “vote rigging”.
The ruling party is portraying opposition parties and critical media as “radicals” who want to “stage a revolution”.
Prime Minister Iraki Kobakhidze said on Monday, “2025 will be important for our internal politics. We must deal a decisive blow to the radicals in our country. Radicalism and liberal fascism must end in Georgia.”
‘Freedom for prisoners of the regime’
Despite regular clashes with police, protesters have been taking to the streets on a daily basis and holding intermittent strikes, mainly in Batumi and the capital Tbilisi, carrying banners that read, “Freedom for prisoners of the regime “
In addition to calls for a repeat of Georgia’s disputed October election, a main opposition demand is the release of protesters detained since last spring, when the government introduced its “foreign agent” law, also called the “Russian law” because it Same as one. Repressive Kremlin laws were intended to crush dissent.
Mass protests in the spring are believed to have triggered the first major confrontation between the ruling party and pro-Western Georgians. Hundreds of protesters have been arrested since then.
Activist Umar Okribelashvili, a 19-year-old who took part in the so-called “No to Russian law” protests, was one of the protesters sentenced in court this week. He will spend 18 months in prison for damaging a temporary metal fence at Parliament Square during protests last May.
As the judge announced his verdict, Okribelashvili’s father looked at his son and said, crying, “I would do anything to hug you now.”
Edited by: John Shelton
