Ruling Georgian Dream files complaints against critical media outlets

The ruling party in Georgia, Georgian Dream (GD), has filed complaints with the country’s Communications Regulatory Commission against television channels Pirveli and Formula over the use of terms such as “regime,” “oligarchic regime,” and “illegitimate government.”

According to lawyer Tornike Migineishvili from TV Pirveli, the complaint argues that journalists should not use terms like “regime,” “Russification,” or “clan court.” Migineishvili described this as “the start of yet another wave of repression against critical media.”

He also published excerpts from the Georgian Dream complaint, which claims that terms like “pro-Russian regime MP,” “threat of imprisonment,” “de facto parliament member,” “clan court,” “Russian Commission meeting,” and “disappearance of opponents” blur the line between fact and opinion.

“Recently, there have been many changes to broadcasting laws, none of which aim to improve media or viewer rights. The goal is to restrict critical media,” Migineishvili stated during an evening news broadcast on June 2.

He warned that repeated fines and financial penalties could realistically threaten the station’s ability to continue broadcasting.

The complaints are set to be publicly discussed on June 5 at the Communications Regulatory Commission, an independent body led since 2017 by Kakhaber Bekauri, the former director of GD founder billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili’s TV station Ninth Channel.

The complaint against Formula was filed on May 27.

“This is only the beginning... It’s censorship, designed to destroy an already financially struggling media. The regime wants to impose censorship on us,” Migineishvili said, calling it “the final stage in Ivanishvili’s campaign to shut down critical media.”