TBILISI, July 30 – Georgia’s fifth president, Salome Zourabichvili, has issued a strongly worded public statement ahead of the final court hearing in the trial of editor Mzia Amaglobeili, calling it a defining moment for the country’s future.
Writing on social media, Zourabichvili described 1 August as a watershed date, saying it would mark a clear line between “Georgia before and after”. She expressed support for Amaglobeili, co-founder of two independent media outlets, who faces charges in a case critics have labeled politically motivated. The government has not commented in detail on the case, but officials have previously rejected claims of political interference in the judiciary.
In her statement, Zourabichvili used strong language to describe the political climate, portraying the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party and its founder Bidzina Ivanishvili as complicit in “injustice” and “persecution”. The outcome of the case is a moral test for the judiciary, police, and GD politicians, she claimed. “Either you are on the side of justice, or you are on the side of a fabricated case and total injustice.”
Newspaper editor and founder Mzia Amaghlobeli is on trial for slapping a police chief in Batumi during a protest earlier this year; a case that has drawn condemnation internationally.
Zourabichvili formally stepped down as president in late December 2024, but remains to play a symbolic role as a spokeswoman for the opposition and civic groups as they demand a period of democratic reforms followed by a re-run election of last year’s parliamentary election.
