GEORGIA: The Foreign Agents Registration Act & more – 5th June 2025

Gamarjobat from Gracia! This is the Rorshok Georgia Update from the 5th of June twenty twenty-five. A quick summary of what's going down in Georgia.

Nika Melia, one of the leaders of the Coalition for Change or Tsvlilebebistvis, was arrested on Thursday, the 29th of May. Officials say he insulted a police officer, but the timing of the arrest tells a different story. Melia had openly refused to pay bail or appear in court over charges related to ignoring a summons from the Parliament’s investigative committee. His arrest happened just as the deadline to pay that bail was about to run out.

Melia called the arrest a kidnapping. He said he was in his car, heading to a political podcast, when a group of policemen—some in plain clothes—stopped him, used force, and threw him into a van. He said they smashed the cameras in his car that had recorded the incident. The next day, he was brought to court, where the judge replaced his unpaid bail with pretrial detention. He also said that the arrest was illegal, as he still had three hours to pay the bail at the time of his arrest.

Lari, almost: 1500

The Ministry of Internal Affairs charged them with insulting Lashkhi during a protest that took place on the 17th of May. The activists had entered a café where Lashkhi was with companions and children, shouting, “Freedom for political prisoners,” “No to the Russian regime” and “Down with Russia’s slaves.”

New laws passed by the ruling party in February allow fines or detention for insulting public officials.

In similar news, on Monday, the 2nd, a court sentenced pro-European protesters Guram Khutashvili and Daniel Mumladze to three years in prison. Police arrested them last December, accusing them of intentionally damaging emergency service cameras and charging them with group acts of violence. The damage reportedly totaled 12,100 lari—about 4,500 dollars.

The defendants admitted to the crime, were ready to cover the damages, and wanted a plea deal, but the prosecution refused.

The defense asked the court to apply Article 50 of the Criminal Code, which allows for a lighter sentence if the defendant admits guilt and cooperates with the investigation. The judge denied the request, saying the violent acts against the state had taken on a mass character and she chose not to apply the article in cases like this.

On that note about prisoners, on Saturday, the 31st, during an interview on Public Broadcaster, a journalist asked the Kotsebi President Misha Kavelashvili whether he would pardon people who were arrested during pro-European protests and face years of imprisonment if found guilty.

He answered that he wouldn’t pardon them unless they acknowledged guilt, saying that pardons require both sides to engage—authorities must agree that the person is no longer a threat, and the individual must show that they understand and accept responsibility. Without that, he said, the process can’t move forward.

Kavelashvili criticized those who see their actions as justified resistance and refuse to admit wrongdoing, comparing them to historical revolutionaries who accepted prison as part of their fight.

On Friday, the 30th of May, the national NGO The Rule of Law Center released a report criticizing the Georgian law enforcement for systemic violence and lack of accountability following the EU accession process freeze in November of last year.

The report says the police used coordinated and excessive force, including torture and inhumane treatment, against protesters and journalists following the start of pro-European protests. Authorities ignored crimes committed by both rank-and-file officers and heads of different departments within the Ministry of Internal Affairs, launching no meaningful investigations.

In twenty twenty-four, the state didn’t punish a single officer for on-duty offenses, and disciplinary action hit a ten-year low. Meanwhile, the state aggressively targeted protesters with the harshest administrative and criminal measures.

Speaking of NGOs, on Saturday, the 31st, the Foreign Agents Registration Act (or FARA), which the Kotsebi says is a word-for-word copy of an American legislation of the same name, came into force. This legislation replaces the Foreign Agents Law but serves the same purpose. The new law targets media and civil society groups that receive foreign funding. Individuals and organizations getting money from abroad must register as a foreign agent and submit detailed documents about the funding. The Anti-Corruption Bureau will oversee the enforcement.

Violations can lead to fines up to 10,000 lari, which is over 3,500 dollars, or up to five years in prison. Lesser breaches carry fines up to 5,000 lari, around 1,800 dollars, or six months in jail. Legal entities will only face fines.

NGOs and media say the law copies Russian tactics, not the U.S. FARA, and aims to silence dissent, with the Kotsebi basically arguing how this law could be Russian and undemocratic if it was copied from the US. The Kotsebi also passed another law requiring government approval for all foreign grants.

The Kotsebi continued their aggressive pushback against criticism. This week, they submitted a complaint to the Communications Commission against the two biggest opposition channels, Formula and TV Pirveli. They argue that both channels use terms that violate the broadcasting law, like illegitimate parliament, oligarchic regime, and judicial clan.

The ruling party recently amended the broadcasting law to regulate not only funding but also content standards, placing editorial norms under legal control. Nodar Meladze, head of TV Pirveli’s news service, says the Kotsebi is also pressuring advertisers to cancel contracts with his channel. He said that many major companies have already pulled out despite the channel increasing viewership and having record ratings.

Eurobarometer, the European Commission’s official public opinion survey, shared a report on Tuesday, the 3rd, showing that trust in the EU has dropped by nine percent in Georgia since last fall. It now stands at forty-nine percent, with thirty-seven percent of respondents expressing distrust and fourteen percent offering no clear answer.

Just a day after the survey went public, online magazine Tabula reported that it was conducted by GORBI—a polling agency frequently used by pro-government media and known for producing results that often align with the ruling party’s interests.

More about the EU as on Wednesday, the 5th, the European Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee adopted a sharply critical report on Georgia. While condemning democratic backsliding and repression, the committee still urged the Georgian opposition to take part in the twenty twenty-five municipal elections in October. Members described it as a key test for Georgia’s democratic resilience and encouraged the opposition to use the moment to show unity in support of democracy.

On Sunday, the 29th, the Facebook pages of the French and Polish embassies warned their citizens to assess the risk before traveling to Georgia. Both embassies said that police frequently detained demonstrators, especially near the Parliament and central squares in Tbilisi. Participating in these protests or even being nearby can lead to hefty fines exceeding 1,800 dollars per incident.

Authorities may deny entry to foreigners, including EU citizens, and even those with valid residence permits, if they suspect involvement in demonstrations or related social media activity.

On the night of Tuesday, the 3rd, someone shot and killed a young man, then dumped his car—with the body inside—into the river. The incident happened on the outskirts of Batumi, on the western coast. Locals found the car partially submerged the next morning, riddled with bullet holes.

The victim’s name was Beso Bolkvadze, he lived in a nearby village and rented out a boat on the local river. Regional online media Batumelebi says the killing may be connected to a conflict with the criminal underworld. About six weeks ago, several people, whose identity is known, reportedly demanded a cut of Bolkvadze’s income and control over his dock but he refused.

Finally, the National Statistics Office said the rate of absolute poverty in Georgia has dropped in twenty twenty-four. The share of people who are below the poverty line is now almost nine percent, which is two percent less than last year. The rate went down both in cities and the countryside, but it is still higher in the villages.

People under eighteen are the poorest group, with an over twelve percent poverty rate. There doesn’t seem to be much difference between men and women in terms of poverty.

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

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Nakhvamdis!