DFWatch staff 
The political confrontation in Georgia hit another low point on Monday after the Supreme Court sentenced Giorgi “Gigi” Ugulava, key opposition politician, to 3 years in jail for diverting public funds during his tenure as Tbilisi Mayor in 2005-2013. Opposition claims it’s a political persecution and the government led by Georgian Dream is steadily drifting … Read more
Georgia’s major NGOs call upon the government to “fulfil the promise made to the public and move to a proportional electoral system”, which will be assumed as its readiness to ensure the country’s democratic development. It also will signal recovery of trust and repute in the eyes of Western partners and diminish the level of … Read more
Embattled de facto president of breakaway Abkhazia Raul Khajimba had to file his resignation amid growing protests of opposition on Sunday evening. Immediately before the resignation, a group of about a hundred of opposition supporters came to his state datcha near Sokhumi to stage a rally demanding him stepping down. Meanwhile, few hours before, Khajimba … Read more
TBILISI, DFWatch–Raul Khajimba, de facto president of the Georgian breakaway region Abkhazia, threatens to impose a state of emergency after opposition activists stormed his office on Wednesday. “I am in Sukhumi at the workplace in the state building,” Khajimba was quoted by Interfax. The authorities work to “localize” the unrest and maintain the “constitutional order”, … Read more
TBILISI, DFWatch–Russian dissident and investigative journalist Yuri Izotov has applied to Georgian authorities for asylum. According to the Ukrainian news website, ua.krynr.com, he said that fears persecution by Russia for his journalistic activities. “[Russian authorities] carried out investigative check for my posts on social networks where I revealed the data of those law enforcers who … Read more
TBILISI, DFWatch–A prominent Georgian medical doctor was released on December 28 after spending 50 days in South Ossetian captivity for “illegal border crossing”. After his release on Saturday, Vazha Gaprindashvili emphasized that he has never admitted crossing the border, which is not recognized as such by Georgia. “My position was from the first day [of captivity], … Read more
TBILISI, DFWatch–Tskhinvali refuses to reopen the passage to Akhalgori, a predominantly ethnic Georgian district of South Ossetia, unless Georgia disbands the checkpoint in Tsnelisi, the de facto president of the breakaway republic said on Thursday. “You address me as the president, but the problem should not be solved by me […]. You should address the … Read more
Georgia’s opposition TV channels have slammed the financial sanctions by the government as politically motivated and vow to keep on “critical broadcasting” amid what they dub as growing pressure by Georgian Dream authorities. On Wednesday, the Ministry of Finance seized bank accounts of and started to forcefully collect overdue taxes from private TV channels, including … Read more
Tskhinvali regime on Friday sentenced a prominent Georgian medical doctor to twenty months in jail for “illegal crossing” of “state border” of the breakaway republic. Vazha Gaprindashvili who is a well-known Georgian medical doctor and currently presides the Association of Orthopedists and Traumatologists of Georgia, was detained in mid-November in Akhalgori where he allegedly travelled … Read more
The tragic death of 15-year old boy has sparked a mass outcry throughout Georgia. Dozens of protesters, mainly young people, went to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Government office and other state institutions to denounce police officers alleged brutality which had led the adolescent to commit suicide. The teenager, Luka Siradze, jumped from the … Read more