Georgien

Georgia has fired around 700 civil servants for supporting pro-European Union protests in the South Caucasus country since December, according to the local chapter of anti-corruption organisation Transparency International.

Chaos erupted in the Georgian courtroom as the verdict was announced, with Mikheil Saakashvili’s supporters calling the judge a ''slave'' of the current government. Saakashvili was found guilty of embezzlement. 

The European Press Freedom Report for 2024 found that Georgia witnessed a sharp deterioration in press freedoms and one of steepest declines in journalists’ safety in Europe, over the course of last year. 

Kremlin-favored candidate Badra Gunba won the presidential runoff in Abkhazia, a Russian-backed breakaway region that legally is a part of Georgia, de facto election authorities said on March 2. Gunba, 47, failed to secure an outright majority in the first round on February 15, forcing the runoff against Adgur Ardzinba, a challenger critical of some Russian-backed economic policies.

On January 29, the Republic of Georgia ceased participation in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) after the latter demanded new parliamentary elections and the release of political prisoners.

Georgian authorities arrested several opposition figures during anti-government protests on the streets of Tbilisi on February 2, prompting the European Union to again condemn what it termed the "brutal crackdown" on dissent.

Mikheil Kavelashvili, a hard-line critic of the West, was sworn in as president of Georgia on Sunday amid a political crisis after the government froze European Union application talks in a move that sparked major protests.

Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili challenged the European Union to do more to support pro-EU protesters and press the ruling Moscow-friendly Georgian Dream party to hold new elections following its unilateral decision to postpone negotiations with the 27-member bloc.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto has pledged to veto a proposal to impose EU sanctions on Georgian officials, for their crackdown on anti-government protests, the First Channel of Georgia reported on Dec. 10.

Georgia's prime minister vowed Thursday to "eradicate" the country's "liberal-fascist" opposition, escalating the government's bitter campaign against its rivals as mass pro-EU protests enter their second week. … The comments come a day after masked police officers raided several opposition party headquarters and arrested opposition leaders.