PEN Georgia

Freedom of speech, freedom of expression. Free platform for Georgian Literature and media

[PEN Georgia @GeorgianPEN]

PEN Georgia – A New Wave of Repression Targets Journalists and Artists.

https://t.co/IO1N9TSeEc

[PEN Georgia @GeorgianPEN]

Joint statement by PEN Georgia and PEN International regarding the impisonment of Georgian poet Zviad Ratiani.

We condemn the sentencing of poet and translator Zviad Ratiani to two years in prison and urge an end to the politically motivated prosecutions of protesters in Georgia.

https://t.co/ZehZKYHLFg

[PEN Georgia @GeorgianPEN]

Today is the final hearing of journalist Mzia Amaglobeli’s trial.
We stand in support and solidarity with her!

Freedom to Mzia Amaglobeli!
#freeMzia #MziaAmaghlobeli

[PEN Georgia @GeorgianPEN]

PEN Georgia, PEN International & PEN America contribute to Georgia’s 4th UPR, assessing progress since 2021 on free expression, cultural worker safety & political control of culture.

Download the full UPR ⬇️

https://t.co/jZmASJTUCa

[PEN Georgia @GeorgianPEN]

#Georgia: Acclaimed poet Zviad Ratiani must be released from pre-trial detention.

PEN International and PEN Georgia call for an end to the disproportionate charges and demand a fair trial.

Read the joint statement:

https://t.co/0MREU85L1f

[PEN Georgia @GeorgianPEN]

PEN Georgia calls on immediate release of 🇬🇪 poet Zviad Ratiani and asks our international partners, @PEN International and other PEN centers to react and spread the information.

Zviad Ratiani, Georgian poet, translator and civil was arrested on June 23 during a pro-European, anti-Russian protest in front of Georgian Parliament.
Zviad Ratiani had already been arrested and severely beaten by the police last November; the court sentenced him to 8 days of administrative detention on December 2, 2024.

After his release, he was attacked and beaten again at the entrance of his home by unidentified individuals. He had previously lived in exile in Austria following a violent incident with the police in 2017, which also led to his arrest.

Persecution and brutal physical violence against Zviad have truly become a persistent pattern. The Georgian literary community is deeply alarmed, especially in light of the new laws passed by Parliament yesterday, which may allow court hearings to be closed to the public, journalists, friends, and family members of the detained.

Zviad Ratiani was arrested under Article 353¹ of the Criminal Code, which pertains to assaulting a police officer and carries a sentence of 4 to 7 years in prison.

[PEN Georgia @GeorgianPEN]

Stay strong Ukraine!!! 🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦

[PEN Georgia @GeorgianPEN]

@MAmaghlobeli has been on hunger strike for the fifteenth day! PEN Georgia call for immediate release of @MAmaghlobeli and all the prisoners of the Georgian Dear regime!

[ბათუმელები • Batumelebi.ge @Batumelebi_ge]

📌 Rappler CEO @mariaressa spoke about the #GeorgiaProtests and @MAmaghlobeli at the Paul VI Audience Hall in Vatican City on Saturday, January 25, during the Jubilee of the World of Communications.

[PEN Georgia @GeorgianPEN]

@PEN International in the support of #Georgia #MAmaghlolbeli imprisonment. PEN International calls on immediate release of the imprisoned journalist.

[PEN International @pen_int]

#Georgia: Authorities appear intent on making an example of Mzia Amaglobeli as they persist in targeting journalists, activists, and critics who courageously speak truth to power. We call for her immediate release.

Read our statement: https://t.co/f69CR2gClK

[PEN Georgia @GeorgianPEN]

The CEO of independent media outlets - Batumelebi & @netgazeti, @MAmaghlobeli, is on a hunger strike. She has refused food since being placed in Rustavi Women's Prison No. 5 as a form of protest.

Her lawyers, alongside Batumelebi's editor-in-chief, held a press conference to assert that Amaglobeli's case is politically motivated and she is in unlawful detention.

[ბათუმელები • Batumelebi.ge @Batumelebi_ge]

🟥The CEO of independent media outlets - Batumelebi & @netgazeti, @MAmaghlobeli, is on a hunger strike. She has refused food since being placed in Rustavi Women's Prison No. 5 as a form of protest.

Her lawyers, alongside Batumelebi's editor-in-chief, held a press conference to assert that Amaglobeli's case is politically motivated and she is in unlawful detention.

🟥They published Amaglobeli's open letter:

"The reason I stand accused today is the direct consequence of the repressive, treacherous, and violent processes unfolding over the past year—processes that seek to silence individuals, suppress free speech, and tighten the grip of dictatorship on our daily lives.

I will not bow to this regime; I will not play by its rules. I am on a hunger strike. There is something greater than life itself - freedom.

Today, it is me. Tomorrow, it could be anyone who dares to dream of a just, democratic, European Georgia—untouched by Russian influence, unshackled by oppression.

Fight while there is still time. Fight wherever you are, in every corner of this land, beyond its borders, villages and cities, streets and lecture halls, workplaces, and public squares.

Be brave. Protect and strengthen one another.

Do not let Georgia be isolated from the civilized world".

#GeorgiaProtests #Georgia #RepressionInGeorgia #TerrorInGeorgia

[PEN Georgia @GeorgianPEN]

PEN Georgia urges the Government to take immediate action and dismiss the criminal case against @MAmaghlobeli!

The Batumi City Court has ordered detention as a preventative measure for @MAmaghlobeli, the founder of @netgazeti and @Batumelebi_ge .

The court accuses Amaghlobeli of assaulting a police officer, a charge that carries a prison sentence of 4 to 7 years. The allegation followed a confrontation and chaotic clash between protesters and law enforcement, which was provoked and further escalated by police actions.

PEN Georgia believes that this exemplary punishment of Mzia Amaglobeli is a deliberate attempt to intimidate the media and suppress independent journalism. The repressive measures enacted by Bidzina Ivanishvili’s current regime bear striking similarities to the oppressive tactics of the Soviet Union in the 1930s. To date, over 50 protesters have faced criminal charges, and around 400 individuals have reportedly suffered torture by law enforcement.
The judiciary, as well as the legislative and executive branches of government, have been compromised by fraudulent elections. In this context, independent media, non-governmental organizations, and ordinary citizens have become the last bastions of freedom in the country.
We urge the government to act immediately by making a political decision to release Mzia Amaghlobeli and all other prisoners of conscience; restore constitutional order and the rule of law in Georgia which can be achieved only by initiating new elections in the country.

[PEN Georgia @GeorgianPEN]

PEN Georgia appeals to the authorities and demands the immediately release of Mzia Amaghlobeli, founder of online media @Batumelebi_ge and @netgazeti .

On the night of January 11, @MAmaghlobeli along with nine other demonstrators, was arrested for hanging a poster during a protest rally in Batumi, Georgia.
Within hours, four of the rally participants were released, but Amaghlobeli was arrested again shortly thereafter, this time at a rally in front of the Adjara Police Headquarters.

Law enforcement officers are accusing her of committing a crime under Part I of Article 353 of the Criminal Code, which pertains to assaulting a police officer. The article carries a sentence of 4 to 7 years in prison.

PEN Georgia views this incident as another attack on freedom of press and calls on the authorities to immediately release @MAmaghlobeli and the other detainees, arrested during the rally.

[EPRC Georgia @EPRC_Georgia]

22.12. - Tbilisi - We’re still here!

25th day of continuous protests.
For freedom. For Europe. For Democracy.
For Georgia.
🇬🇪🇪🇺

[ARC – Artists at Risk Connection @AtRiskArtists]

Read ARC's statement here: https://t.co/5tvrztm9ff (4/4)

@HRCGeorgia @WomensFundGeo @pen_int @GeorgianPEN @DalanFund @hrfunders @EEDemocracy
#ArtisticFreedom #Protest #FreeExpression #HumanRights

[Salome Zourabichvili @Zourabichvili_S]

Georgia never surrenders when it stands for what is right. And Georgia is right - you are right!

[Peter Fischer @Diplo_Peter]

#Tbilisi tonight
Glory of 🇬🇪