Mikheil Saakashvili
President of Georgia
Office of the President
Rustaveli 29
300002 Tbilisi
Georgia
Fax: + (995 32) 99 86 90/ 99 96 30
Vienna, 9 February 2004
Your Excellency,
The International Press Institute (IPI), the global network of editors, media executives and leading journalists in over 120 countries, is deeply concerned about the pressure applied by the Georgian authorities on mass media since the November “Rose Revolution”.
According to information provided to IPI, pressure has been applied against many journalists and media outlets in Georgia. This includes the attack on the apartment of Luba Eliashvili, anchor of the popular programme “Iberia”. Her apartment was shot at by unidentified individuals on 25 November.
In addition to the attack on Eliashvili, the situation for the media in the Ajaria Autonomous Republic has also deteriorated.
On 11 January, a group of around 15 men assaulted Mzia Amaglobeli and Eter Turadze, journalists for the magazine Batumelebi, damaged the camera of Imedi reporter Diana Trapaidze, and seized the video equipment of Nestan Shechladze of Rustavi-2. Trapaidze and Shechladze were also attacked on 10 January after they filmed police ripping down posters of the Kmara protest movement.
On 13 January, the film crew of the Imedi TV company were attacked near the Ministry of State Security in Ajaria. The cameraman, David Gogitauri, was assaulted and a camera taken. The crew was filming the new Georgian flag that was hanging on a building in Batumi and they wanted to interview the man who had raised it.
Most recently, unidentified individuals broke windows inside the apartment of Zviad Pochkhua, president of the Independent Association of Georgian Journalists and editor-in-chief of the Georgian Times.
IPI urges Your Excellency to authorise an immediate and thorough investigation into these incidents and to do everything in your power to create a media environment that allows journalists to exercise their profession free of harassment and violence.
We thank you for your attention.
Yours sincerely,
Johann P. Fritz
Director
