Sunday, April 26, 2026

Saakashvili: 'Georgia's prison reforms a complete failure'

President Mikheil Saakashvili says the reform of Georgia's prisons has been a total failure, after videos of prisoner abuse were aired on TV. The European Union as well as Norway has spent millions on improving conditions. (IPN.)

TBILISI, DFWatch – The Georgian president admits that Georgia’s prison system is a complete failure and needs to be repaired.

Mikheil Saakashvili Wednesday instructed his prime minister to take responsibility for reforming the system and ensure the safety of

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Massive outcry over prisoner abuse videos

Protesting continued Wednesday, after several videos were aired that showed serious maltreatment of prisoners. The government claims the videos were staged. (Photo: Mari Nikuradze.)

TBILISI, DFWatch – A series of protest rallies have erupted throughout the capital and large cities in Georgia, after shocking videos of prisoner abuse released by the interior ministry and aired on two opposition TV channels last night.

Some of the footage appeared

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Georgian “Abu Ghraib” causes public outrage in Tbilisi

People gathered spontaneously outside the concert hall where President Saakashvili was, to show their disgust at the images of humiliating physical abuse in Georgia's prisons. The prison minister has said she will resign. (IPN.)

TBILISI, DFWatch – Four different videos showing physical and sexual abuse of prisoners in Georgian prisons has triggered a widespread public outrage and a demand for the prison minister to step down.

The videos were released on Tuesday by the Ministry of Internal

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Satellite dishes will not be distributed after all

Maestro director Ilia Kikabidze says the government's offer was just a ruse to fool the international community into believing that it cares about freedom of expression. (DFWatch photo.)

TBILISI, DFWatch – Negotiations a TV company and the government about installing satellite receivers have failed.

The director of Maestro TV claims the government’s offer to negotiate about the distribution of the equipment was just a ruse, and that it never planned

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Georgian woman speaks out about acting in anti-Islam film

Anna Gurji (21) unwittingly played Muhammad's youngest bride in the controversial film Innocence of Muslims. In an open letter, she says she is in shock over how she was taken advantage of by the film's producers.

TBILISI, DFWatch – A Georgian actress who played in the anti-Islam movie ‘Innocence of Muslims’ has released an open letter explaining that she didn’t have any idea about the full plot of the film and only read part of the script.

Anna Gurji (21), whose real

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Emigrants return to Georgia to defend democracy

Georgians living abroad returned to their homeland Monday to fight for their right to vote. Some brought satellite dishes. (IPN.)

TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgian emigrants Monday returned to their homeland to protest the restriction of their right to vote.

A number of Georgian emigrants today arrived in Batumi, a port city on the Black Sea coast, and held a protest rally in front of a public

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EU ambassador urges parties to trust observers

Bulgarian diplomat Philip Dimitrov is the EU's ambassador to Georgia. (DFWatch photo.)

TBILISI, DFWatch – The EU ambassador to Georgia on Saturday evaluated the election period in the country and once again remarked that it is important that participants recognize the election results if international organizations do so.

Philip Dimitrov on Saturday

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