Reporters Complain over Lack of Transparency in Defense Ministry

The Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) Georgian service reported on August 14 that freedom of information and transparency have significantly decreased at the Georgian Ministry of Defense (MoD) recently.

According to this report if a journalist ?fails to fit in the MoD?s informational policy,? that reporter is doomed to be placed on the Ministry?s black list. 

?If there is a critical article about MoD officials, there are some complains from [the MoD] and so-called “friendly advise” – nothing more, but next time, if you need information from the MoD, you [an author of critical article] will fail to obtain required information. So you try to be moderate in order not to spoil relations with the MoD,? Eka Gulua of the newspaper Rezonansi told the RFE/RL.

?There have been lots of [defense] ministers, but there has never been such a terrible situation in the MoD before. They [MoD leadership] are afraid of even slight criticism and extremely sensitive about that criticism,? said Irakli Aladashvili, military expert and reporter from the weekly newspaper Kviris Palitra, to RFE/RL.

According to an author of this report, Koba Liklikaldze of the RFE/RL Georgian service, it was impossible to obtain information from the MoD about the reported expulsion of four Georgian servicemen from Iraq because they were allegedly drunk. 

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