Democracy & Freedom Watch

Tbilisi, DFWatch-Over a hundred non-governmental and media organizations declare their open disobedience to the foreign influence draft law initiated by the Georgian authorities and suspend all cooperation with the government “until the Russian Law is dropped.” In addition, as stated in the joint statement, they invite people to protest the bill on Sunday, at 19:00, on […]

Georgian government, after a one-year forced pause and in the face of criticism both inside and outside the country, re-initiated the bill on “Agents of Foreign Influence”. The new initiative, titled as the draft law on “Transparency of Foreign Influence”, which Georgian Dream seems to be determined to finally adopt, envisages the mandatory registration of non-governmental […]

TBILISI, DFWatch–Georgian Dream is in the process of preparing a legislative initiative to “protect society from pseudo-liberal ideology” and its inevitable harmful consequences.” The country may face such a situation when “we will be asked to legalize the so-called civil partnership”, says Mamuka Mdinaradze, majority leader at the parliament. Opposition political parties dub this as empty […]

TBILISI, DFWatch–Russian President Vladimir Putin has suggested his country might exchange American journalist Evan Gershkovich for a Russian assassin jailed in Germany.  Speaking to former Fox News host Tucker Carlson in a two hour long interview, the Russian leader alluded to holding negotiations about the exchange of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who is imprisoned […]

TBILISI, DFWatch–After Georgian Dream founder Bidzina Ivanishvili returned to public politics in late December, everyone in Georgia expected major upheavals in the government, although only a small number of commentators predicted dismissal of the prime minister. However, this became clear on Sunday, when the pro-government TV company Imedi reported that the chairman of Georgian Dream and […]

TBILISI, DFWatch–More than 700 people were detained on charges of crossing the de facto border between Abkhazia and Georgia in 2023, states security service of the breakaway Abkhazia. Most of them were punished administratively, and criminal prosecution was started against 15. According to the Sokhumi regime government, only 30 of these “crimes” are related to smuggling. […]

TBILISI, DFWatch–Dutch low-cost airline, Transavia, is starting to operate in the Georgian market. Tickets can currently be purchased on the company’s website for flights from late April. During the summer navigation season of 2024, the airline will fly in the Amsterdam-Tbilisi-Amsterdam direction. However, the company has a connection service, through which it is possible to fly […]

A poll commissioned by the US National Democratic Institute has once again shown the dire, and one might say catastrophic, situation faced by most political parties in Georgia a year before benchmark general elections. According to the release published by NDI on Monday, if parliamentary elections were to be held now, presumably only the ruling party, […]

Occupied South Ossetia’s de facto authorities continue to change toponyms in order to purposefully eradicate Georgian placenames. De facto parliament of South Ossetia adopted the law on (re-)naming geographical places on Tuesday at the session. The head of the Committee on National Politics, Religion and Media Alan Tadtaev said at the session the new law provides […]

TBILISI, DFWatch – The opposition party demands the establishment of a visa regime, a ban on the entry of cars with Russian license plates and other strict measures in order to prevent the “invasion of Russians in Georgia”. For this, the Lelo, political party founded by entrepreneur Mamuka Khazaradze, submitted Monday “Protect Georgia Act” to the […]