The attack on Onise Okriashvili is not an isolated case - it is the result of a violent environment created by the state, which has been actively used for years against people critical of the Georgian Dream, - reads the statement of the Georgian Young Lawyers Association.

According to them, the Georgian Dream first creates and then maintains a violent environment against its opponents, which, in combination with other forms of repression, poses significant challenges, including in terms of physical safety.

“On July 22, 2026, activist and comedian Onise Okriashvili was attacked and physically abused by three individuals near his home. The attack was preceded by a coordinated media campaign spanning several days, both on social media and by state-run media outlets.

The attack on Onise Okriashvili is not an isolated incident. It is the result of a state-created violent environment that has been actively used for years against people critical of the Georgian Dream. The Georgian Dream first creates and then maintains a violent environment against its opponents, which, in combination with other forms of repression, poses significant challenges, including for physical security.

Pro-government media play a major role in coordinated campaigns inciting violence, which, in fact, serve to identify and discredit targets of violence in order to create a deterrent effect in society for exercising free expression, assembly, and other fundamental rights.

The report published by Amnesty International in June 2026 also speaks about repression in Georgia. Amnesty International speaks of at least 6 people who have been the target of physical violence as a result of a discrediting campaign since 2023,” reads the statement.

For information, comedian Onise Okriashvili was assaulted. Later, Okriashvili stated that the physical assault was related to the events surrounding writer Nodar Dumbadze. The Ministry of Internal Affairs detained one person in connection with the physical violence that occurred.

A few days ago, Onise Okriashvili spoke about writer Nodar Dumbadze in one of his podcasts, which was considered an insult by certain groups. Onise Okriashvili himself responded to this with a video message and stated that the video was taken out of context and that it did not insult the writer, but hypothetically portrayed an absurd person who despised Nodar Dumbadze.