Court Sentences Nika Gvaramia to 3 Years and 6 Months in Prison in Rustavi 2 Case
By Natalia Kochiashvili
Tuesday, May 17, 2022
Tbilisi City Court Judge Lasha Chkhikvadze has announced the verdict in the case of Nika Gvaramia, Kakha Damenia and Zurab Iashvili in the case of Rustavi 2 on May 16.
Mtavari Arkhi TV director Nika Gvaramia has been sentenced to 3 years and 6 months in prison. Gvaramia was arrested in the courtroom after the trial. The judge reclassified the charges against Gvaramia under Article 220 of the Criminal Code (abuse of power) and found him guilty in two episodes.
As for Damenia, the charges against him were also reclassified under Article 220 of the Criminal Code (abuse of power) and found guilty. Damenia was fined GEL50,000.
According to the court decision, Iashvili was acquitted of the charges. The bail against him as well as the seizure of property was lifted.
The Prosecutor's Office indicted Gvaramia, Rustavi 2's former CFO Damenia and Inter Media Plus CEO Iashvili on September 6, 2020 in connection with the case. The investigation accused Gvaramia of embezzling Rustavi 2 property, legalizing illegal income and abusing his official authority. Damenia, the former financial director of Rustavi-2, was accused of illegal embezzlement of the TV station's property rights. As for Iashvili, he was accused of commercial bribery and forgery.
According to Mikheil Sarjveladze, Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Human Rights, the verdict against Gvaramia should not be considered as political persecution.
“This is not political revenge. The plot and content are known for what we are talking about. The court concluded that this was an unlawful act in the category of an offense. A decision was made by the head of the enterprise, reducing the income of the organization. The Public Defender does not deny this. Was it good or bad for the organization, let's talk about it - what could be the reason for the organization to earn less than more? The Public Defender says that he might insure long-term and short-term risks and can you tell me what risks he insured?” Sarjveladze asked rhitorically.
He says that issue is politically sensitive, because Gvaramia's activities are political in nature, which consequently raises political sensitivities, but it does not mean that in a given situation anyone can speak out against political persecution. ‘Quite well, it is convincingly explained that there was an offense which the court found to be a crime.
Georgian Dream MP Irakli Zarkua said regardless of party affiliation, he will never be happy to arrest a person, but Gvaramia was sentenced based on specific evidence, when he stole or embezzled 7 million from the company. The court found him guilty and sentenced him for it.
Majority MP Guram Macharashvili recalled the decision of the Strasbourg court in the case of Rustavi 2, which ruled that the Georgian judiciary had made a correct, fair and objective decision regarding the seizure of the TV station by Nika Gvaramia and his accomplices.
“It has now been established that he and his accomplices had seized the funds and these funds were not included in the budget for the reason that Rustavi 2 did not have the financial means. It turned out that quite a lot of money from the company was misused, illegally in favor of Gvaramia and his accomplices. Therefore, exaggerated political statements and emotions are unfounded.” he said adding that \foreign partners and the international court have seen well that, unfortunately, the radical part of the opposition in Georgia and part of the so-called media outlets in Georgia use the shield of democracy as if they are committing illegal acts. According to him it is against the rule of law to commit an offense and you want to escape that responsibility because you are a public servant or the head of the media.
The embassy of US to Georgia has announced that this ruling ‘calls into question Georgia’s commitment to rule of law, and further demonstrates the fundamental importance of having an independent, impartial judiciary in Georgia. The statement emphasized that thi case raised questions from its inception, including about the timing and the charges.
“The disturbing pattern of selective investigations and prosecutions targeting those in opposition to the current government undermines the public’s confidence in the police, prosecution, the courts, and the government itself. Particularly at this time, when Georgia has an unprecedented opportunity to advance its Euro-Atlantic integration, even the perception of politicized prosecution is detrimental. It is the United States’ firm position that a healthy democracy depends on ensuring judicial independence and protecting media freedom. That is why we have repeatedly called for the government to undertake comprehensive reforms to advance these fundamental democratic principles.”
Acting British Ambassador to Georgia released a statement in the court ruling, expressing dissapointment at tge sentence, “especially in the context of Georgia’s significant decline in international press freedom rankings issued recently by Reporters Without Borders.”
“The UK is a strong defender of media freedoms, which are essential for citizens to be able to exercise their democratic rights, on all sides of political debate.”
Local watchdog ‘Transparency International - Georgia’ wrote that the court executed ‘a political order by punishing the head of the critical television’.
“Based on the study of the case materials and observation of the process, we can conclude that the case is politically motivated, with the aim of punishing Nika Gvaramia and disrupting the activities of a critical TV station. The use of a justice system for media censorship and intimidation sends a dangerous message to other critical media outlets as well. However, the verdict is a continuation of the political persecution that has been waged against state opponents for years.”
Statement also read that TIG and Public Defender submitted two opinions of Amicus Curiae to the court which indicated that the allegations were baseless in the case. However, it must be said that this is not the first fact of persecution of Gvaramia who often spoke about attempts of his bribery, intimidation, blackmail and surveillance of family members.
NGO also announced that given the deteriorating media environment and actions against critical media outlets arise a feeling that the recent rhetoric and concrete actions of the ruling party and government are aimed at preventing Georgia from receiving a positive response from the European Union.
The political parties Lelo and United National Movement assessed the ruling as politically motivated.
