Tbilisi City Court orders GEL 40,000 bail for Rustavi 2 ex-director general
By Tea Mariamidze
Monday, August 12
Tbilisi City Court has ordered GEL 40,000 bail for Rustavi 2 TV former Director-General, Nika Gvaramia, and prohibited him from leaving the country without notifying the Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia (POG).
The court made the decision on August 11 and gave Gvaramia one month to pay the bail.
Gvaramia was charged by the POG for an offense under Article 220 of the Criminal Code of Georgia, which pertains to the use of managerial and representational powers in an enterprise against the legitimate interest of the enterprise, for the purpose of getting profit for others, which caused significant damage.
The POG said that on January 16, 2015, Gvaramia, as the director-general of Rustavi 2, signed an agreement on behalf of the TV channel with Inter Media Plus, owned by his friends, adding the agreement allowed the company to place commercial advertisements on Rustavi 2 for free.
The agency noted as a result, in 2015, Rustavi 2 faced 7,377,230 GEL of declared damage, whereas Inter Media Plus received 8,690,664 GEL of profit. It was asking for GEL 80,000 bail for Gvaramia, but the judge decided to satisfy the request partially.
Gvaramia says he is innocent, adding the charges against him were raised due to his critical attitude towards the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party founder and chair Bidzina Ivanishvili, who is often referred to as the “informal ruler” of the country.
“I will not pay the bail. When the defendant says that he will not pay the bail, the prosecution is obliged to introduce a preventive measure that will serve its purpose. In this case, it is imprisonment. Everyone will realize that it is a political case,” he said.
The man noted that it is a matter of principle, not the money. He also says it is unclear for him why he was restricted from leaving the country.
Before the court verdict, several non-governmental organizations released a statement regarding the recent charges against Gvaramia, saying the case might be politically motivated.
“The developments over the last couple of months have shown that the investigative bodies have become noticeably active against the opponents of the government, as well as towards individuals that have a direct or indirect link with media outlets running a critical editorial policy. As a rule, the actions of the law enforcement go hand in hand with the aggressive rhetoric of the government,” the NGOs say.
The organizations claim the Prosecutor’s office is working the case against Nika Gvaramia in an accelerated manner.
“The accelerated manner of investigation for Gvaramia’s case is noteworthy as there are many other cases of high public interest that are not investigated as promptly and quickly. Moreover, the Prosecutor’s Office decision to become active against Gvaramia coincided with the latter’s announcement of the intention to create a new TV company,” the statement reads.
The NGOs call on the Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia to present the specific evidence of the case and “act within the interests of the law rather than through the interests of the ruling party.”
The POG announced on Friday that due to Gvaramia’s actions Rustavi 2 suffered losses of 6,763,510 GEL.
Opposition parties speak about the repressions. The United National Movement member, Grigol Vashadze, says the fate of Gvaramia allegedly awaits everyone who is in opposition.
Meanwhile, one of the leaders of the European Georgia party, David Bakradze claims the authorities are persecuting people undesirable for them.
“This is selective justice, political persecution and personal revenge against Nika Gvaramia,” he stressed.
