The Daily Beat: 25 May
The British, Swedish, Norwegian, and Estonian embassies in Tbilisi, along with Lithuania and the Czech Republic’s foreign ministries, expressed deep concern over the pre-trial detention of Georgian opposition leader Zurab Japaridze. They urged Georgian Dream authorities to uphold democratic values and respect fundamental rights, calling Japaridze’s detention a sign of declining democracy in Georgia.
Grigol Gegelia, a member of the opposition coalition Strong Georgia, was attacked near his parents’ house, the party’s press office reported. According to the press office, Gegelia was ambushed by an unidentified individual who initially verbally insulted him before physically assaulting him. Gegelia sustained minor head injuries and received medical attention on-site. The police are investigating the incident since the attacker fled the scene.
A member of the European Union Delegation to Georgia was denied entry at Tbilisi International Airport on May 21, the EU Delegation confirmed with Civil.ge. Deputy Interior Minister Aleksandre Darakhvelidze of the ruling Georgian Dream party claimed that the entry denial was due to a “technical problem” and insisted that the incident was “unintentional.”
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) reported that British journalist Will Neal was denied entry into Georgia after returning from the UK and the EU. RSF condemned the decision as “arbitrary” and “political,” urging for its reversal. This incident reflects a trend of entry denials affecting activists, journalists, and foreign nationals in Georgia.
Georgia’s Public Defender’s Office has voiced objections to a legislative proposal backed by the ruling Georgian Dream government to dismantle the country’s Special Investigation Service (SIS). On the contrary, the Office stressed the need to retain and strengthen the agency’s independence. The SIS was launched in 2022 as an independent investigative body under the 2017-2020 EU-Georgia Association Agenda.
A 21-year-old Georgian national, Michail Chkhikvishvili, also known as “Commander Butcher,” was extradited to the U.S. from Moldova on May 22 to face federal charges in Brooklyn. Arrested in Chișinău in July 2024, he faces a four-count indictment for soliciting violent attacks against Jewish communities and racial minorities, including a scheme to distribute poisoned candy to children on New Year’s Eve.
The human rights watchdog, Amnesty International, has documented a growing pattern of gender-based violence and reprisals against women participating in ongoing anti-GD protests. The organization warns that the authorities are using unlawful and degrading strip searches, threats of sexual violence, and sexist insults against women to intimidate and punish peaceful demonstrators.