Shalva Papuashvili

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Irakli Kobakhidze. Photo: Mariam Nikuradze/OC Media.

2024 Georgian Parliamentary Elections

Georgian Dream to keep Kobakhidze as PM

by OC Media

•2 min read

Georgian Dream’s political council has approved party founder Bidzina Ivanishvili’s recommendation to keep Irakli Kobakhidze as prime minister. The political council convened on Thursday to nominate Georgian Dream members for the several posts. The official results of 26 October’s elections gave the ruling Georgian Dream party a large majority, with 54% of the vote. However, local media and observer groups have documented widespread vote rigging by the ruling party. The party’s executiv

Georgia

Georgian speaker criticises foreign-funded organisations for ‘meddling in politics’

by Shota Kincha

•4 min read

The speaker of the Georgian Parliament has accused foreign-funded organisations of ‘meddling in politics’, continuing the ruling party’s rhetoric attacking civil society. In a lengthy Facebook post on Friday, Georgian parliamentary speaker Shalva Papuashvili suggested such groups were ‘proxies for radical parties’ and were helping ‘undermine Georgia’s drive towards the EU’. His comments come less than a year after the government was forced to drop controversial ‘foreign agents’ legislation f

Georgia

Georgian speaker accuses USAID of ‘financing religious intolerance’

by Tata Shoshiashvili

•3 min read

The speaker of the Georgian parliament has criticised the US aid agency, USAID, for funding ‘propaganda against the Georgian Church’ and ‘financing religious intolerance’. On Saturday, Shalva Papuashvili also accused ‘so-called civil activists’ and ‘media belonging to the [opposition parties United] National Movement and Lelo’ of attacking the Georgian Orthodox Church. Papuashvili was referring to criticism of the Church for its handling of a scandal surrounding an icon that featured Jose

Georgia

Calls for Georgian Dream MPs to resign after ‘sexist’ insults in parliament

by Tata Shoshiashvili

•4 min read

Georgia’s opposition is calling for the resignation of a ruling party MP, after two MPs made insulting statements towards female opposition MPs in parliament. During a plenary session on Tuesday, Georgian Dream MPs Aluda Ghudushauri and Irakli Beraia accused Ana Tsitlidze and Teona Akubardia of, respectively, being unattractive to former President Mikheil Saakashvili and having ‘a long tongue that has been everywhere’. Ghudushauri, who is the first deputy chair of the Human Rights and Civi

EED

Papuashvili slams Western donors for paying fines of Georgian protesters

by Tata Shoshiashvili

•2 min read

Georgia’s Parliamentary Speaker Shalva Papuashvili has criticised international organisations for allegedly paying fines imposed on protesters, accusing them of seeking to ‘incite civil strife’. Speaking to journalists on Monday, Papuashvili criticised international organisations, likely in reference to the European Endowment for Democracy (EED), for paying the fines of ‘lawbreakers’ — people detained at protests in Georgia — ‘which can be understood by extremist groups as a carte blanche for

Georgia

Georgia’s ruling party accuse USAID of preparing activists for revolution

by Tata Shoshiashvili

•5 min read

Georgia’s State Security Service and leading members of the ruling Georgian Dream party have accused America’s state aid agency of ‘inspiring riots’ in the country and training groups that planned riots and intended to provoke violence. The accusations were first aired on Monday at a briefing by a representative of Georgia’s State Security Service (SSG), Khvicha Begiashvili, before being repeated by Georgia’s prime minister, ruling party chair, and parliamentary speaker. Begiashvili said th

Shalva Papuashvili. Photo via Parliament website

Freedom of the Press

Georgian speaker responds to OC Media with allegations of ‘skewed reporting’

by Shota Kincha

•7 min read

After OC Media reported that Georgia’s parliamentary speaker, Shalva Papuashvili, had contacted the organisation’s donors regarding their rejection of his pitch, the speaker has responded directly to the organisation, while the party chair has defended his actions. In a letter sent to OC Media on 13 September, published in full at the end of the text, Papuashvili accused the organisation of engaging in ‘skewed journalism’ and maintaining poor journalistic standards.