Prepared by Messenger Staff
Papuashvili: Opposition Figures are 'Personal Prisoners' of Foreign Interests
Georgian Dream Parliament Chairman Shalva Papuashvili has accused the Helsinki Commission of inciting Georgian citizens to commit crimes to create political leverage against the government. His remarks follow a statement from the Commission claiming the Georgian Dream party is using the judiciary as a "weapon" to silence dissent, specifically highlighting the case of Elene Khoshtaria. The Droa party leader was recently sentenced to 18 months for "property damage" after defacing a campaign banner and now faces up to 15 years for "crimes against the state."
Papuashvili dismissed the international concern as a calculated strategy, stating, "It is clear that they want to capitalize on this to some extent, for which they organized all this... so that they can then use these statements to attack the Georgian government." He further characterized opposition figures as "personal prisoners of the Helsinki Commission and similar organizations," arguing that external actors "incite them to commit crimes so that they can then organize discussions, resolutions, and statements."
The Chairman concluded that these organizations suffer no consequences for their rhetoric while "using our citizens" and pushing them toward illegal acts.
Transparency International Georgia Files Two New Applications with Strasbourg Court
Transparency International (TI) Georgia has submitted two additional applications to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), alleging violations of fundamental rights by the Georgian judiciary.
The first case involves journalist Vika Bukia, a host on TV Pirveli, who was fined 4,000 GEL for an administrative offense after referring to a Georgian Dream MP as a "slave" on Facebook. TI Georgia stated that in her case, "the rights to freedom of expression, a fair trial, and protection from discrimination were violated."
The organization criticized the domestic courts for relying on legislation that "places representatives of Georgian Dream in a privileged position" and for disregarding the "higher degree of tolerance required from politicians."
The second application concerns lawyer Mikheil Zaqareishvili, who was sentenced to five days of administrative detention following a protest at Parliament. According to TI Georgia, Zaqareishvili was "a victim of violations of the rights to freedom of assembly and expression, the right to respect for private life, and the right to a fair trial."
The organization argued that the court's claim that Zaqareishvili obstructed pedestrians was contradicted by video evidence showing "the number of protesters was too small to hinder the movement of passersby."
Over the past year, Transparency International Georgia has submitted a total of eight applications to the Strasbourg Court. "We will continue to defend the rights of our citizens both before the Strasbourg Court and in other international human rights protection mechanisms," the group stated.
