“Georgian civil society considers the imprisonment of Formula TV anchor and journalist Vakho Sanaia alarming, as it represents yet another step against freedom of expression,” a joint statement by several non-governmental organizations said.

The statement says that the Georgian Dream government is attempting to finally neutralize critical media and drive it out of the public space through coordinated attacks and the use of repressive mechanisms.

“We believe that this court decision is another attempt to suppress independent media and critical voices, which is characteristic of authoritarian regimes of the Russian-Belarusian type, where dissenting and critical opinions are the main enemy and target of authoritarians. It is clear that the Georgian Dream government is meticulously copying and establishing the best Russian practices and attempting to accustom society to a reality in which people are punished for expressing their personal opinions and views, turning such an approach into the norm.

“On July 22, sanctioned judge Zviad Tsekvava sentenced Vakho Sanaia to 14 days of administrative detention over a social media post. This is the first case in which a citizen has been sentenced to administrative detention based on a post published on social media. Previously, Vakho Sanaia had been fined GEL 6,000 for the same reason.

“It is clear that independent media and every critical voice represent a significant obstacle for Georgian Dream, as they are precisely the ones exposing alleged corruption and other possible criminal links involving the Georgian Dream government and people close to it, and informing the public about the flaws within the branches of government. Instead of investigating real crimes and appropriately punishing those responsible, Georgian Dream is engaged in persecuting whistleblowers and uses repressive laws adopted by the government itself to silence them. In this context, independent and critical media are a particular target of the authorities, against which the entire state repressive apparatus has been mobilized.

“For years, law enforcement agencies, the judicial system, the Communications Commission and Parliament have been turned by Georgian Dream into instruments for fighting independent media and journalists and silencing them. Through coordinated attacks and the use of repressive mechanisms, the Georgian Dream government is attempting to finally neutralize critical media and drive it out of the public space.

“Article 17316 of the Code of Administrative Offenses, on the basis of which Vakho Sanaia was sentenced to administrative detention, was added to the Code by the Georgian Dream Parliament in February 2025 through an expedited procedure, which was negatively assessed by the OSCE/ODIHR and the Venice Commission. A special structure was created within the Ministry of Internal Affairs specifically to enforce this article, and it is ironically referred to by the public as the ‘Scrolling-Screenshotting Department.’

“We express our solidarity with Vakho Sanaia, critical media and all journalists who have recently become targets of the repressive policies of the Georgian Dream government. Independent media is providing an invaluable service to the country at this critically decisive moment and, despite limited resources, is adequately fulfilling its duty to properly inform the public,” the statement reads.

The signatories of the statement are: Transparency International Georgia; Civil Movement for Freedom; Center for Economic Policy Research; Civil Society Foundation; European-Georgian Institute (EGI); Georgian Foundation for Strategic and International Studies; Democracy Research Institute (DRI); Partnership for Human Rights; Human Rights Center (HRC); Tolerance and Diversity Institute (TDI); Georgian Democracy Initiative; Green Alternative; Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association; Georgia’s European Orbit; Social Justice Center; Institute for Development of Freedom of Information (IDFI); Prevention for Progress; and Georgia’s Future Academy.