Employees of the Rustavi 2 broadcasting company have spread a joint statement. They express support to Nika Gvaramia and say that he is the main guarantee of the channel's editorial policy.

“The decision of the Human Rights Court of Strasbourg, which left Rustavi 2, the main bastion of western values ​​in Georgia, alone in the fight for these values, is disappointing for us. The main problem for the channel, media environment and ultimately for the whole country would be changes in the critical editorial policy of Rustavi 2 in this situation.

We believe that Nika Gvaramia as the Director General and his labour contract were the main guarantees of Rustavi 2's editorial independence, since Nika Gvaramia expresses and protects the values ​​for which we all fight for”, reads the statement.

According to the employees of the TV company, they are doubtful of Kibar Khalvashi's statement that he is not going to change the editorial policy or the staff of the broadcasting company except for Nika Gvaramia and their doubts were proved in the very first minutes, when his lawyer and future director of the channel (according to him) arrived at the Public Registry for registering the company shares together with representatives of the governmental media, without notifying Rustavi 2 of it or answering the calls of Rustavi 2 producers.

“We think that Khalvashi represents the government of Bidzina Ivanishvili, who had been fighting against Rustavi 2, on the side of the Georgian Dream, which is a political group that has been trying to change Rustavi 2's critical editorial policy since the very first day of coming to power”, say the TV company employees, adding that they will continue to fight till the final victory together with the management of the channel.