Georgia offers grants to encourage trade with its breakaway regions
Trade center at Rukhi. (Facebook.) Georgia proposes a new grant program aimed at encouraging trade across the conflict lines within the framework of the peace initiative A Step to a Better Future. […]
Georgia revokes decision to freeze Gulen-linked university’s student intake
Rally by IBSU students and professors outside the Ministry of Education. August 23, 2018. (1tv.ge.) TBILISI, DFWatch--The Georgian regulatory body for quality in education on Saturday revoked a controversial decision to bar a [...]
News
Seven members of Ukraine’s Donbass Battalion detained in Tbilisi
Semen Semenchenko wearing the Donbas Battalion uniform. Photo dated 2017. (Facebook.) TBILISI, DFWatch--Georgian police have detained six Ukrainian and one Georgia citizen who are members of the Donbass Battalion, a volunteer detachment of [...]
‘Georgia has no president’: Georgian opposition demands snap parliamentary elections
Grigol Vashadze addressing the rally. (IPN) TBILISI, DFWatch--Several thousand people attended a rally in Tbilisi Sunday to support the United Opposition and its demand to dissolve parliament and hold snap parliamentary elections. The [...]
Chidaoba, Georgian traditional wrestling, listed by UNESCO as intangible cultural heritage
Boys contest in Georgian Chidaoba. (Georgian National Wrestling Federation.) TBILISI, DFWatch--Chidaoba has been added to the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO. The traditional Georgian style of wrestling has [...]
Georgian opposition rejects election result, plans massive rallies
TBILISI, DFWatch--After suffering a crushing defeat in the runoff election for president, the leaders of the UNM-led United Opposition have decided to reject the results and launch protest rallies similar to those in 2003, which [...]
Exit polls show Salome Zurabishvili clear winner in Georgia’s presidential election
Two exit polls published Wednesday night predicted that Salome Zurabishvili won by at least ten percent. (Facebook.) TBILISI, DFWatch--The results of both the 'pro-government' and the 'pro-opposition' exit polls suggest that Salome Zurabishvili, [...]
Ambassadors of US, UK, NL spending election day in Marneuli, hotbed of manipulation and violence
From left to right, ambassadors Jos Douma (Netherlands), Justin McKenzie Smith (UK) and Ross Wilson (US), addressing journalists in Marneuli. (Twitter.) TBILISI, DFWatch--American, British and Dutch ambassadors are visiting southern Georgia today to [...]
Polls show a close race in Georgia’s run-off election for president
Salome Zurabishvili at a rugby match between Georgian and Tonga in Tbilisi. (Facebook.) TBILISI, DFWatch--Georgia’s runoff election for president on Wednesday gained an unexpected drama after the opposition candidate’s strong showing in the [...]
Regional opposition politician stabbed five days before Georgia’s presidential election
Nodar Burdiladze at a UNM rally in Tbilisi in 2017. (Facebook.) TBILISI, DFWatch--A regional official in the United Opposition is in a critical condition after being stabbed outside his house, five days ahead [...]
Breakaway authorities in Abkhazia pressuring Georgian schools to teach in Russian language
A part Georgian school in the village of Sida. (DFWatch.) GALI, DFWatch--Breakaway Abkhazia is fastening its grip on Georgian schools in Gali, local teachers told DFWatch. Sokhumi suspects that the schools in this [...]
“Zurabishvili and the GD should be worried”: American analysts speak on Georgian elections
Paul Stronski. (VOA) Voice of America’s Anna Kalandadze discussed aftermath and fallout of the first round of presidential elections in Georgia with leading Eurasia analysts in Washington. Anna Kalandadze is VOA Georgian chief [...]
Europe and Georgia
PACE to discuss dismissing its president in October
PACE President Pedro Agramunt. (Council of Europe.) TBILISI, DFWatch–The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) will discuss a proposal to dismiss its chairperson in early October after a motion was tabled on Friday. The motion to dismiss PACE President Pedro Agramunt was backed by 158 out of the 636 member […]
Opinion
Minorities
Groups say 25-year old’s fatal stabbing in Tbilisi was motivated by xenophobia
Vitali Safarov (Facebook). TBILISI, DFWatch--A young human rights activist who was stabbed to death in Tbilisi nearly two weeks ago was murdered by members of a neo-Nazi group, Georgian civic activists say. Vitali [...]
NGO News
NGO coalition in Georgia proposes new procedure for selecting chief prosecutor
DFWatch Editor-in-Chief Lasha Tughushi is one of the authors of the bill. Behind him, co-author Natia Kuprashvili. TBILISI, DFWatch–Georgia’s largest NGO coalition proposes an overhaul of the existing system for selecting a chief prosecutor in order to minimize the risk that one party takes the decision unilaterally. The proposed bill comes in the wake of a two-week-long series of rallies in Tbilisi […]
CSOs Seek Involvement in Public Defender’s Selection Process
We would like to respond to the statements related to the selection of Georgian Public Defender and call on the Parliament of Georgia to ensure civil society participation in the [...]
Open Society criticizes Hungary’s government for anti-NGO law
Open Society Foundations criticizes the Hungarian government and accuses it of trying to silence academic freedom by proposing a law against internationally funded NGOs, which will make it ‘impossible’ for the Central European University in Budapest to operate. […]