Georgia celebrates another birth. For the people fighting for Freedom and for their rights, every small victory means a new life and a new step towards establishing a strong and self-sufficient nation.
On 7 March the European court of human rights (ECHR) has suspended indefinitely the decision of the Supreme court of Georgia on the transfer of the only opposition TV channel of the country the property of his former owner, close to government businessman Kibar Khalvashi.
This decision was taken unanimously by a panel of European judges on the background of how Georgia has developed a wave of mass protests in connection with the attempts of the authorities to establish total control over the media.
From the very beginning of this process left no doubt in their political motivation and was accompanied not only dirty intrigue, and blood. So, the Creator of “Rustavi 2” Erosi Kitsmarishvili died under mysterious circumstances shortly before promised to reveal previously unknown details of the acquisition of the channel by Kibar Khalvashi. In addition it was found that the three judges hearing the case at different stages of Utmelidze, Gujabidze and volume, and some of their relatives had problems with the law because of what they were subjected to pressure from the authorities and Prosecutors.
The presence of such facts in the case of “Rustavi 2” is not at all a coincidence, because I was interested in this true mastermind of the judicial process, the Creator of the ruling party “Georgian dream”, the oligarch Bidzina Ivanishvili. This man and his followers never concealed his dislike for the opposition TV channel, calling him the “mouthpiece of the former government”.
Given that in December 2016, the business structure of the family Ivanishvili and its close associates have United under the control of the TV company “Imedi”, “Maestro” and the company “GDS”, “Rustavi 2” remains the only rating they can’t control the channel.
Of course, Ivanishvili who has earned his fortune by doubtful transactions in Russia and having the psychology of the Russian oligarch feudal Lord, such a situation could not like it. It was therefore found Kibar Khalvashi having their grievances against the previous government, who gladly agreed to act as the protagonist in this production.
Given the above circumstances, he had no trouble passing all steps of the Georgian judicial system, even though the actual nepodvijnosti his financial requirements.
The government does not pay attention to mass public protests, opposition rallies and numerous requests to stop the illegal harassment of Rustavi 2.
Acting his usual methods Ivanishvili had planned to spring to destroy the only opposition television station and establish its complete monopoly in the media. Of course, for Georgia, such a development threatened to be a disaster, because freedom of expression is a fundamental guarantee for the free future of the country.
And then something happened that does not fit in the life concepts of the oligarchs, criminals and corrupt officials from the former Soviet Union. The European court of human rights, the highest international judicial institution in Europe, having considered the claim “Rustavi 2” the Georgian authorities have forbidden to transfer the rights of ownership of the channel to Kibar Khalvashi to complete its consideration of the case — thereby adopting unique in their practice decision.
Thus numerous efforts Ivanishvili to destroy the opposition TV channel, all his intrigue, pressure on judges, threats and intimidation of journalists, proved to be futile when the people stood up for their rights and fought for as long as many foreign politicians, diplomats, and now the European court did not support its requirements.
How much help “Rustavi 2” was provided during this time from the community — thousands of ordinary people came out to protest, staged flash mobs, web-published in defense of freedom of speech and the media. Many even spent the night in the yard of the TV company, ready to physically prevent the capture of the “Rustavi 2”.
This protest was none of it provoked, was not organized, was not paid for. People simply acted at the behest of their hearts, guided by their own moral and ethical principles.
What happened last months in Georgia is a unique manifestation of Democracy in its purest form — the one that inspired the French revolution and which can be observed only in countries that are in the process of the struggle against totalitarianism and dictatorship.
Ivanishvili promised the Georgian society’s development and prosperity, but once in power deceived him and is just the destruction of the Georgian state and the consolidation of their own well-being, like some African dictator. But have people of victory every time I remind you that the Mercantile interests of one person or group of people, even if they are influential and rich, can’t silence the voice of those who are genuinely seeking a better life for their children and their homeland.
