According to Nona Kurdovanidze, Chairperson of the Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association, the attack on Giorgi Gakharia exhibits signs of political persecution, and the charge under which the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) initiated the investigation is too mild.

As Kurdovanidze stated on PalitraNews’ program Day Newsroom, violence has become a part of the "Georgian Dream" political strategy, and impunity encourages criminal behavior.

“There was a roughly 15-minute interval between the attacks on Giorgi Gakharia and Zviad Koridze. This indicates that the impunity we’ve been witnessing fuels criminality, and violence has become a tool of the Georgian Dream’s political agenda, a way of addressing the public. If these incidents are not investigated promptly, and the individuals involved are not held accountable, this will further confirm that these scenarios are either desired or encouraged by the government.

Dimitri Samkharadze, a Georgian Dream MP, publicly shared a video on his Facebook page showing ‘thugs’ attacking various NGO offices and damaging facades during the ‘Russian Law’ protests. There has still been no legal response to those incidents. This impunity is part of Georgian Dream’s policy. The Ministry of Internal Affairs must classify these incidents correctly.

This crime has eyewitnesses, and the victim himself could likely identify the perpetrators. Regarding the legal qualification, the charge brought by the MIA is too lenient given the severity of the case. This cannot simply be classified as an act of violence—it likely has political motives. Regarding Zviad Koridze, it may also be related to his professional activities, as he is an employee of Transparency International Georgia. Therefore, this crime may constitute political persecution. A crime of a different legal qualification, such as persecution on political grounds, should be considered. Both the MIA and the Prosecutor’s Office bear responsibility for ensuring the investigation proceeds under proper oversight and that evidence is not destroyed. If there is evidence of destruction, that itself should be a separate subject of investigation. Existing evidence must be promptly collected. Without swift criminal prosecution of those involved, the investigation will seem like mere rhetoric, with no real intent to resolve the case,” said Kurdovanidze.

Kurdovanidze also commented on the detention of *Batumelebi* and *Netgazeti* founder Mzia Amaghlobeli, who was sentenced to pretrial detention, stating that Amaghlobeli is being punished for her professional activities.

“This is evident from the use of pretrial detention as a preventive measure and the circumstances surrounding her initial arrest. She was initially detained arbitrarily under an administrative offense for posting a banner and allegedly disobeying a lawful order from the police. That detention was unlawful, and she was later released. However, she was soon detained again under a criminal investigation. Yesterday, the court unjustifiably imposed pretrial detention simply because the prosecutor requested it. Pretrial detention is the harshest measure and should only be used when no other preventive measure can mitigate the risks.

What risks are we talking about? For instance, whether she would flee. The court should have assessed whether Mzia Amaghlobeli posed a flight risk and what evidence supported that claim. Could another measure, like bail, not address the risks? Another issue is whether she might influence witnesses. What witnesses could Mzia Amaghlobeli influence? Could she influence someone like Dgebuadze, for instance?

Questions also remain about the legal qualification of her actions—whether her conduct constitutes a criminal offense. This has yet to be debated in court.

This cannot be considered an assault. Such actions should not lead to criminal charges under this article. Assault on a police officer is a crime and must be punished, but the key issue is whether her actions qualify as an assault, especially considering that she was surrounded by individuals who had previously been subjected to police misconduct and arbitrary detention, making them victims of injustice,” Kurdovanidze explained.