GEORGIA: Potential Opposition Ban & more – 2nd Oct 2025

Gamarjobat from Gracia! This is the Rorshok Georgia Update from the 2nd of October twenty twenty-five. A quick summary of what's going down in Georgia.

On Thursday, the 25th, the Georgian Dream or the Kotsebi President Misha Kavelashvili delivered an eleven-minute speech at the 80th UN General Assembly. He spoke about Georgia’s history, peace efforts, the two thousand eight Russian-Georgian war, and the ongoing war in Ukraine, saying Georgians stand in solidarity with Ukraine, because they understand better than anyone what the war means. He said Georgia’s main priority is to avoid war and protect its people at all costs.

He addressed Abkhaz and Ossetian communities in separatist regions occupied by Russia, saying Georgia remains open to dialogue and reconciliation.

Kavelashvili also said that Georgia is ready for fair, respectful cooperation with all countries, but will not accept ultimatums or threats.

Next up, on Friday, the 26th, Mamuka Khazaradze, the leader of the Coalition Strong Georgia, or Dzlieri-Lelo, and Gogi Gakharia, the leader of For Georgia, or Sakartvelostvis, released a joint statement reminding voters that the two parties will not compete against each other in the municipal elections.

This post caught attention because it came with a photo of the two opposition leaders together. Gakharia has not been in the country for several months. His trip to Europe began during the period when opposition leaders were being arrested, including Khazaradze, who was later pardoned by President Kavelashvili.

Speaking of the municipal elections, just a day before, Dzlieri-Lelo and Sakartvelostvis held an event in Nadzaladevi, Tbilisi, to present one of their candidates for the city council. Titushkebi from the Kotsebi interrupted the event, as they started throwing eggs at the crowd. Irakli Kupradze, the candidate for Tbilisi mayor, was speaking when the eggs started flying. He didn’t stop his speech and said this was how the Kotsebi chose to act during the elections. The event continued shortly afterward.

Still, the egg-throwing incident wasn’t the worst for Dzlieri-Lelo. Over the past week, five of their candidates for Bolnisi, Zestafoni, Khulari, Qizilajlo, and Pirveli Kesalo withdrew from the elections, and at least one of them showed support for the Kotsebi candidate instead.

On Monday, the 29th, Irakli Kupradze held a briefing, saying the withdrawals resulted from intimidation, harassment, and bribery targeting their candidates, carried out by the police, the State Security Service, and elements of the criminal underworld linked to the Kotsebi. As evidence, he shared a recording of a call with Kara Orujev, one of the candidates who withdrew. In it, Orujev described how his younger relatives were indebted to certain businessmen and criminal groups, and how promises of jobs and opportunities were made to him in exchange for his cooperation.

Boycotting or not, this could be the last elections for all major opposition parties, at least if the Kotsebi gets its way. On Saturday, the 27th, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze said his party plans to file a case in the Constitutional Court in October to ban parties they see as a threat to Georgia’s constitutional order.

He said they want to ban the United National Movement, or Natsebi, the Coalition for Change, or Tsvlilebebistvis, Dzlieri-Lelo, and Sakartvelostvis.

He added that under the new law, the ban would also apply to parties with similar goals, activities, or members. So even if the Natsebi members form a new party under a different name, the ban would still apply to them.

On Wednesday, the 1st, three days before Georgia’s municipal elections, Bidzina Ivanishvili released a public letter. He usually publishes such letters only ahead of elections, while staying silent the rest of the time. In this one, he says the hardest thing for him was seeing betrayal inside his own team, most likely referencing Gakharia, who was Prime Minister under the Kotsebi.

Ivanishvili admits his party made mistakes over the past thirteen years, but he insists none of them threatened Georgia’s future. He urges supporters to vote on the 4th of October, calling the election a continuation of the peaceful change that began in twenty twelve.

In other news, on Friday, the 26th, Moldova barred a crew from Imedi, Georgia’s largest TV channel and the main source of the Kotsebi propaganda, from entering the country. Imedi reported that the journalist and his camera operator, who had gone to Moldova to cover parliamentary elections, were held at the airport for five hours before authorities moved them to the departure hall.

Officials said the journalists lacked proof of accommodation, financial means, and a clear purpose for entry. However, it is more likely that Moldovan authorities viewed Imedi as a pro-Russian outlet. As a result, the Imedi crew could not witness firsthand the victory of Moldova’s pro‑European party.

Speaking of Imedi, Guram Rukhadze, its owner and one of the richest men in Georgia, received a surprise when he was hosting foreign friends in a restaurant in Tbilisi. A pro-European activist went to his table and tried to explain to his guests that their host was the owner of a channel that was spreading hate and disinformation in the country. She also tried to show them the pictures of people who were brutally assaulted by the regime's policemen. The guests sat awkwardly in silence, while Rukahdze started accusing the activist of being paid for disruptions, before she was escorted out of the restaurant by the staff.

A video of the encounter went viral. Check it out with the link in the show notes.

On Saturday, the 27th, The Guardian published an op-ed by Mzia Amaglobeli, founder of independent media outlets Batumelebi and Netgazeti, currently imprisoned for resisting a police officer during pro-European protests.

In her letter, Amaglobeli calls on Europe to stand with Georgia, warning that abandoning the country would reward Russian aggression and endanger European security. She paints a stark picture of a government that crushes independent journalism, spreads propaganda, and bends Georgia back toward Moscow’s orbit.

She talks about the courage of young Georgians who fill the streets with EU flags, refusing to back down. Amaglobeli says staying silent would betray her fellow journalists, political prisoners, and the thousands risking everything for democracy.

Read the full letter with the link in the Show Notes.

In other news. On Friday, the 26th, Zaza Shatirishvili, a pro-government commentator and philosopher, caused outrage with his remarks about young people in Georgia. Speaking on a radio show, he said part of the country’s youth has no place in Georgia and should emigrate. He mocked Gen Z, saying many students are indoctrinated and stupid, that Georgia is a conservative country, and they should deal with that. Talking about the importance of conservative values, Shatirishvili praised Spain’s former dictator, Francisco Franco, calling him a hero who defended religion and saved Spain from anarchism and liberalism.

It seems a week does not go by without an arrest of an opposition member. On Wednesday, the 4th, the State Security Service arrested Zviad Kuprava, a member of the Tbilisi City Council from the Natsebi. Authorities say he posted a video on Tuesday the 30th, calling on people to disrupt the municipal elections and overthrow the government.

In the video, Kuprava said activists would organize at 500 different locations across Tbilisi to foil what he called a Russian special operation, and he demanded the release of jailed ex-president Misha Saakashvili and other prisoners.

Authorities charged him with publicly calling for the overthrow of the government and for resisting authorities.

On Thursday, the 25th, Ted Jonas, a member of the Supervisory Board of the Anaklia Development Consortium, wrote that Georgia is wasting a historic opportunity. He says that with Ukraine now striking Russia’s Novorossiysk port on the Black Sea, Georgia could become a key trade hub if it had a deepwater port capable of handling the largest cargo ships, linking Central Asia and China to Europe.

That was exactly what the Anaklia project was supposed to do, but nearly six years have passed since Georgia canceled its agreement with a Western consortium to build the port. Jonas adds that talks with a Chinese company to replace the consortium have also stalled.

He suggests the only reason for this lost opportunity could be Bidzina Ivanishvili, possibly influenced by pressure from Russia, which does not want an economic competitor on the Black Sea.

Aaand that’s it for this week! Thank you for joining us!

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Nakhvamdis!