Goga Machavariani

A verdict that reveals more about Georgia than any government speech. There are decisions that describe a country more precisely than any political report, and the case of Georgian activist and teacher Gota Tchanturia falls squarely into this category. On November 18, Judge Manuchar Tsatsua sentenced him to a total fine of 245,000 lari , equivalent to approximately €82,500 , for 49 counts of blocking a road. In a European legal system, this would be a sum conceivable in cases of organized...

Quelle: IPN.ge In Georgia these days, if you keep your eyes open, you can witness something that feels as though it belongs to another era. On Rustaveli Avenue, in the very heart of Tbilisi, stands a small, elderly woman with a firm gaze and a Georgian flag in her hand. Her name is Aza Chilachava , seventy-one years old, displaced from Gagra (Abkhazia) , now a symbol of the moral stubbornness that has become rare in this country. Standing on the asphalt, facing the police, she appears almost...

It's a familiar spectacle: When an authoritarian regime has lost all credibility among its own population, it seeks out foreign faces—professors, experts, "friends of Georgia"—to maintain the veneer of normality. In Georgia, this face today bears the name of Wolfgang Herrmann , a German academic who, with obvious joy, appears in front of the cameras of pro-government broadcasters to legitimize Bidzina Ivanishvili's oligarchic system. Herrmann plays the role perfectly: He speaks calmly,...