Georgia: Continued arbitrary detention of journalist Mzia Amaghlobeli
URGENT APPEAL - THE OBSERVATORY
GEO 001 / 0225 / OBS 008
Arbitrary detention /
Hunger strike /
Ill treatment
Georgia
21 February 2025
The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a partnership of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), requests your urgent intervention in the following situation in Georgia.
Description of the situation:
The Observatory has been informed about the continued arbitrary detention and hunger strike of Ms Mzia Amaghlobeli, a prominent Georgian journalist and founder and director of independent Georgian news outlets Batumelebi and Netgazeti.
On the evening of 11 January 2025, during protests demanding a re-run of Georgia’s disputed October 2024 election in Batumi, west of Georgia, Ms Amaghlobeli was arbitrarily arrested by the Batumi police for putting up a poster with information about an upcoming protest on a wall of the Batumi police station. She did it in response to the fact that the police had already arrested several protesters for the same act on 11 January, after a new law introduced heavy fines for minor offenses, including for putting up stickers and posters on public property. At first, Ms Amaghlobeli was arbitrarily held for one hour at the Batumi police station, before being released.
As Ms Amaghlobeli was leaving the police station, the police continued arresting peaceful protestors, including two of her personal acquaintances. Amid the resulting turmoil, an altercation occurred between Ms Amaghlobeli and the Batumi police chief Irakli Dgebuadze, during which he insulted her. During this altercation, Ms Amaghlobeli slapped the police chief on the cheek. This action was done without sufficient force to cause any harm and was an immediate reaction to the insults uttered by Mr Dgebuadze, with no relation to Ms Amaghlobeli’s human rights work.
Ms Amaghlobeli was immediately rearrested and taken into detention without being granted access to her lawyers, who spent at least three hours trying to enter the Batumi police station to meet her. Her defence, taken up by the Georgian Young Lawyers Association (GYLA), states that the Batumi police chief, Mr Dgebuadze, verbally and physically abused Ms Amaghlobeli after she had been rearrested, and spat on her face while inside the police station. On 14 January 2025, Batumi City Court ordered that Ms Amaghlobeli should be held in pre-trial detention until March 2025 in the N5 special detention facility for women, in Rustavi, south of Georgia. The decision was appealed, but the Kutaisi Court of Appeals dismissed the appeal on 21 January 2025. Following this, Ms Amaghlobeli’s defence team submitted another request for a review of her detention. However, on 19 February 2025, the Kutaisi Appeals Court ruled the request inadmissible. The next hearing is scheduled for 4 March 2025, during which the judge will deliberate on the continuation of her pre-trial detention.
Ms Amaghlobeli’s rearrest was made under disproportionate charges of “attacking a police officer” under Article 353, Part 1 of the Georgian Criminal Code — a criminal offense that carries a prison sentence of four to seven years. For an act to be classified under this article, the following key elements must be present: violent and aggressive assault, direct intent, and a connection to the police officer’s professional duties. Ms Amaghlobeli’s action, carried out in defence against the arbitrary actions of authorities, does not meet these requirements.
Between 12 January 2025 and 18 February 2025, Ms Amaghlobeli was in hunger strike to protest her arbitrary detention. At the first stage, she did not receive appropriate and regular medical care, necessary to prevent the deterioration and the onset of irreversible consequences of a prolonged hunger strike for her health. On 27 January 2025, Ms Amaghlobeli’s lawyers requested to receive timely information about the medical treatment being provided to her. The full medical documentation was only handed over to the lawyers on 31 January 2025. GYLA denounces that the medical documentation received on 31 January revealed that Mzia Amaghlobeli has not been granted all the necessary examinations and procedures required for a comprehensive assessment of her health condition. On 2 February 2025, GYLA appealed to the Georgian Public Defender, Levan Ioseliani, to ensure the establishment of a special medical team to monitor the health condition of Mzia Amaghlobeli. On 4 February 2025, Ms Amaghlobeli was transferred to a hospital, with her consent, to undertake medical examinations. On 18 February 2025, faced with a rapid deterioration of her health condition, Ms Amaghlobeli announced she would stop her hunger strike and that, under medical supervision, she would attempt to resume eating.
The Observatory condemns Mzia Amaghlobeli’s double arrest, arbitrary detention, disproportionate criminal charges, and ill-treatment, and denounces Georgian authorities’ retaliation against her defence of human rights and independent journalism.
The Observatory further condemns the lack of comprehensive and prompt medical supervision and care provided to Ms Amaghlobeli during her hunger strike.
The Observatory calls on the Georgian authorities to immediately and unconditionally release Mzia Amaghlobeli, and in the meantime, to provide her with timely and adequate medical care.
Actions requested:
Please write to the authorities of Georgia asking them to:
- Guarantee in all circumstances the physical integrity and psychological integrity and well-being of Mzia Amaghlobeli and all human rights defenders in Georgia;
- Immediately and unconditionally release Mzia Amaghlobeli and all human rights defenders arbitrarily detained in Georgia;
- Ensure that Mzia Amaghlobeli receives adequate medical follow-up that meets her health needs and addresses the consequences of her hunger strike;
- Put an end to all acts of harassment – including judicial harassment – against Mzia Amaghlobeli and all human rights defenders in Georgia;
- Guarantee, in all circumstances, that all human rights defenders and journalists in Georgia can exercise their right to protest and other legitimate activities without fear of reprisals, and free of all undue restrictions, including judicial harassment, arbitrary arrest, deprivation of liberty or other arbitrary sanctions.
Addresses:
- Mr. Irakli Kobakhidze, Prime Minister of Georgia. E-mail: info@gov.ge. Twitter: @GovernmentGeo
- Mr. Vakhtang Gomelauri, Minister of Internal Affairs of Georgia. E-mail: police@mia.gov.ge. Twitter: @MiaofGeorgia
- Mr. Giorgi Gabitashvili, Chief Prosecutor of Georgia. E-mail: presscenter@pog.gov.ge. Twitter: @OfficialPOG)
- Mr. Shalva Papuashvili, Chair of Parliament of Georgia. E-mail: contact@parliament.ge Twitter: @Geoparliament
- Permanent Mission of Georgia to the United Nations in Geneva. E-mail: geomission.geneva@mfa.gov.ge
- Embassy of Georgia to Belgium, Luxembourg and Mission of Georgia to the European Union. E-mail: eomission.eu@mfa.gov.ge. Twitter: @GEOmissionEU
Please also write to the diplomatic representations of Georgia in your respective countries.
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Geneva-Paris, 21 February 2025
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.
The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders (the Observatory) was created in 1997 by the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) and FIDH. The objective of this programme is to prevent or remedy situations of repression against human rights defenders. OMCT and FIDH are both members of ProtectDefenders.eu, the European Union Human Rights Defenders Mechanism implemented by international civil society.
To contact the Observatory, call the emergency line:
- E-mail: alert@observatoryfordefenders.org
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