Journalists Launch Movement Demanding Release of Mzia Amaghlobeli

Journalists and editors from several media outlets are launching a new movement demanding the release of Mzia Amaghlobeli, founder of Batumelebi/Netgazeti. She has been in pre-trial detention since January and faces a prison sentence of four to seven years.

Journalist Nino Zautashvili, who was recently dismissed from the Georgian Public Broadcaster, made the announcement during a joint broadcast aired late Tuesday on three opposition-leaning television stations – TV Pirveli, Formula, and Kavkasia.

“We journalists, representatives of independent media, view her imprisonment as an attack on freedom of speech, an attempt to suppress, silence, and intimidate,” Zautashvili stated.

She said the movement would bring together those demanding Amaghlobeli’s immediate release. “We declare once again that Mzia has not committed a criminal offense and is being punished for her journalistic activities. She is a prisoner of conscience. Our movement will not tolerate the imprisonment of a journalist, and we will use all local and international platforms for Mzia’s freedom.”

Gela Mtivlishvili, editor of online media outlet Mtis Ambebi, said the movement would organize events and campaigns aimed at securing Amaghlobeli’s release.

High-Profile Case of Mzia Amaghobeli

Amaghlobeli was arrested on January 12 and charged with assaulting the chief of Batumi police, Irakli Dgebuadze. She faces four to seven years in prison under Article 353 Prima of the Criminal Code.

The case has become one of the most high-profile legal proceedings in Georgia’s recent history. Austrian MEP Lena Schilling and German Ambassador to Georgia Peter Fischer attended Amaghlobeli’s most recent hearing on May 16.

In addition to the criminal proceedings, the Ministry of Internal Affairs initiated an administrative case against Amaghlobeli on May 7 under Article 150 of Georgia’s Administrative Offenses Code, which concerns the defacement of municipal property. The case is linked to her initial arrest on January 11, when she posted a sticker calling for a general strike near a police station.

On April 28, her defense team, represented by the Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association (GYLA), filed a complaint with the European Court of Human Rights on Amaghlobeli’s behalf.  The complaint alleges violations of multiple articles of the European Convention on Human Rights, including the rights to liberty, fair trial, privacy, expression, effective remedy, and protection against misuse of restrictions.

Also Read:

• 16/04/2025 – GYLA Slams “Ineffective” Probe into Alleged Police Abuse of Mzia Amaghlobeli
• 17/03/2025 – Social Justice Center Submits Amicus Curiae Brief on Amaghlobeli Case to Batumi City Court
• 20/01/2025 – GYLA: Amaghlobeli Criminal Prosecution a Political Repression

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