The Daily Beat: 11 June
The British Embassy canceled planned grants intended to support transparency and competitiveness in Georgia’s upcoming local elections, citing procedural “uncertainty” stemming from a recently amended law requiring foreign donors to obtain government approval before giving grants to local organizations. Online media outlet Tabula was among the intended recipients.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk told the country’s Parliament that his government is lobbying at the EU level to suspend or restrict visa-free travel for Georgia, citing democratic backsliding and migration concerns. “We are now working to build the necessary majority to limit or suspend visa-free travel for Georgia, along with other countries,” Tusk said.
Temur Katamadze (Gaffar Yılmaz), a Turkish citizen of Georgian descent, was forcibly expelled to Turkey after his voluntary departure notice expired. Katamadze, who has lived in Georgia since 2012 and sought citizenship, came into public eye during recent anti-regime protests. He was arrested in January.
Georgia’s Interior Ministry has launched a criminal investigation against activist Nino Datashvili for allegedly assaulting a civil servant during a June 9 incident at Tbilisi City Court, where bailiffs forcibly removed her as she tried to attend a hearing for detained protesters. The ministry alleges Datashvili physically assaulted one of the bailiffs while being dragged out.
Some opposition politicians, journalists from critical TV channels, and activists have been summoned to court over Facebook posts containing terms like “slaves,” “a disgrace of a woman,” “a traitor,” “a bastard,” and others aimed at Georgian Dream MPs, including Mariam Lashkhi and Nino Tsilosani. Georgian Dream made insults an administrative offense in February, punishable by a fine up or up to 45 days of detention. Courts are scheduled for June 12. Follow our resistance live blog for updates.
Giorgi Jincharadze was approved as the head of the government of the Autonomous Republic of Abkhazia, succeeding Levan Mgaloblishvili, who resigned on June 2.
The Georgian Dream one-party parliament adopted a legislative package without dissent in the second reading that would allow authorities to expel foreigners and ban them from reentering the country for administrative offenses, among others. A representative of the Interior Ministry had previously said the changes would specifically target foreigners participating in anti-regime protests.
The GD parliament unanimously approved Giorgi Gabitashvili as Chief Auditor. Gabitashvili, who previously served as Georgia’s Prosecutor General, has been sanctioned by the U.K. He will succeed Tsotne Kavlashvili in the new role.
On June 10, Public Defender Levan Ioseliani presented his 2024 human rights report to the Georgian Dream parliament. The report, which covered protests and police impunity, drew sharp criticism from GD MPs. Among others, MP Tea Tsulukiani asked whether Ioseliani had made any reorganizations since his election in 2023, and if not, why.