Vice speaker of Georgian parliament calls journalist severely beaten by police a ‘crooked person’

Nino Tsilosani, a Georgian Dream member and the Vice Speaker of Parliament, called Formula journalist Guram Rogava, who was attacked by riot police while performing his professional duties, a ‘crooked person from start to finish’.

Formula is typically considered to be opposition-leaning, and is often critical of the ruling party.

On Tuesday, when Rogava was asking questions to Tsilosani inside the parliament building, she said the incident was ‘sad’ but went on to attack Rogava’s character.

‘It was a sad incident, but it was even sadder because you are a crooked person from start to finish, and this little incident, someone’s mistake, gave you the right to stand here [in parliament] and ask us some stupid questions’, she told Rogava.

In response to Rogava’s follow-up question, when he asked, ‘was this an incident?’ Tsilosani answered, ‘yes, the mistake of a few people among those many police officers, gave you the crooked people [presumably referring to journalists from critical media outlets] the right to stand today and ask us some questions’.

After finishing the sentence, she quickly left the room, not paying attention to additional questions from the journalist.

On Wednesday, Rogava posted the video of their interview on Facebook, saying that ‘lustration is a very necessary and useful process!’.

‘Despite the relentless attempts to break me, I will continue my work calmly and undisturbed! I believe in the mission of journalism and this is the main thing for me now’, he said.

In 2023, Parliamentary Speaker Shalva Papuashvili’s decree obliged journalists to stop an interview if an MP, member of staff, or a guest does not consent to it.

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OC MediaShota Kincha

On 29 November, Formula published footage appearing to show a riot police officer tackling and hitting Rogava on the head. He was later hospitalised as a result.

According to Formula, the officer was ‘first beating a fallen civilian, then ran towards Guram Rogava and deliberately hit him in the head’.

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Georgian riot police in Tbilisi have violently cracked down on a pro-EU demonstration sparked by Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze’s announcement that Georgia was halting its EU membership bid ‘until 2028’. Thousands of demonstrators stayed overnight on Rustaveli Avenue, periodically clashing with…

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Formula and other media outlets reported that as a result of the violence, he suffered broken facial bones and a fractured neck.

The Special Investigation Service recognised Rogava as a victim, but yet no one has been arrested yet in the case.

Since the protests began on 28 November, law enforcement and unidentified masked people have assaulted a number of protesters, including dozens of journalists covering the proceedings.

The authorities have yet to hold any of those responsible for attacks on protesters accountable.

OC Media’s co-founder Mariam Nikuradze on the first night of the demonstrations was knocked from a ledge by a water cannon, injuring her leg and destroying her camera.

The incident appeared to have been deliberate, with police aiming the water stream away from the protester and towards Nikuradze and other journalists who were filming.

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Unconfirmed reports suggest that OC Media co-founder and co-director Mariam Nikuradze may have been placed on a list of people to be arrested by the Georgian authorities. Information about the list, which contains 48 names and their ID numbers, was provided to OC Media by a credible source who cla…

OC MediaRobin Fabbro

Human rights activists in Georgia have suggested that more than 400 demonstrators could have been detained during pro-EU demonstrations against the government in November and December — a large number of whom claim that they were subjected to physical or psychological abuse by law enforcement officers.

For almost 80 days thousands of people gathered in Tbilisi and other cities of Georgia demanding new elections and the release of protesters detained during this wave of protests.

Georgian police detain six protesters as protests enter 75th day

All six were detained during a protest on Rustaveli Avenue on Monday.

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