Police investigating attack on offices of Tbilisi Pride, Shame movement
Civil movement Shame reported that no one was injured in the attack on their office. Photo: Nino Alvavidze/Agenda.ge
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Police are investigating an attack on the offices of Tbilisi Pride and the Shame movement by right-wing groups protesting the Tbilisi Pride march earlier today, the Ministry of Internal Affairs has announced.
The Interior Ministry condemned hate-motivated actions and calls on individuals gathered in the streets of Georgia’s capital Tbilisi ‘to maintain order, obey the lawful demands of the police and protest within the framework of the law.’
Director of Tbilisi Pride Giorgi Tabagari has tweeted:
❗️This is how our office looks like after todays attack. @GovernmentGeo and @MIAofGeorgia failed to protect people and didn't stop aggressive groups to destroy our property..#TbilisiPride21 #Georgia #Pride pic.twitter.com/mLADg7BMgP
— Giorgi Tabagari (@Tabagari) July 5, 2021
Civil movement Shame reported that no one was injured in the attack on their office.
Police are also looking into the removal and destruction of an LGBT flag from the Tbilisi Pride office.
The protesters tried to break into the office of the Shame movement located behind the parliament building. Journalists were in the office and were covering current events. Rally participants also damaged their equipment”, says the official statement.
Violence against journalists and obstruction of their ability to perform their professional duties is also under investigation.
The organisers of Tbilisi Pride have cancelled the March of Dignity, due to ‘the inaction of the executive power’ which was scheduled for 6 p.m. later today.
The ruling Georgian Dream party says that ‘political interests’ and not the interests of the LGBT community stood behind today's Tbilisi Pride march.
NGOs and opposition politicians have stated that the inaction of the government and inflammatory statements by Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili regarding the Tbilisi Pride march encourage violence by right-wing groups against civic activists and media representatives.
Organisers of Tbilisi Pride march have announced their cancellation of the event on Monday, citing "shameful" comments by Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili and "inaction" from the interior ministry on ensuring safety for participants in the face of right-wing counter-demonstration in the capital.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs has called on Tbilisi Pride to call off the march scheduled for 6 p.m. today, due to security risks caused by the counter rally of right-wing groups and the patriarchate. Individuals gathered at the counter rally on Rustaveli Avenue in central Tbilisi attacked and insulted journalists and obstructed their professional activities.
Right wing activists who had gathered on Rustaveli Avenue this morning to protest the Tbilisi Pride march scheduled for 6 p.m. later today attacked journalists and cameramen on the spot, injuring dozens of media representatives. Among the injured media representatives there are eight from Rustavi 2, two journalists from TV Pirveli, and employees of On.ge, Tabula, Netgazeti, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and other media outlets.
Georgian TV channel Rustavi 2 will not cover events organised by right-wing groups starting today, amid the violence against journalists at the Tbilisi Pride march counter rally. The TV channel also calls on the Ministry of Internal Affairs to immediately investigate criminal offences against the employees of the TV station.
Four defendants who attacked journalists at the Tbilisi Pride march counter rally on July 5 have been denied release on bail. Three defendants were sent to pre-trial detention for a violent attack on the journalists and cameramen of Tabula, New post agency, TV channels Rustavi 2 and Mtavari Arkhi and the fourth one for the physical assault of the cameramen of Palitranews.
Ushangi Datunashvili and Irakli Tsignadze, accused of attacking TV Pirveli and Rustavi 2 cameramen at the Tbilisi Pride march counter rally on July 5, have been denied bail.
Five more people have been arrested for group violence, persecution and assault of journalists and three people have been detained for damaging the office of Tbilisi Pride during a right-wing counter rally on July 5. Three of the 32 detainees from the rally of July 6 were fined for administrative violation, the maximum fine of which is 3,500 GEL (about $1,107/€934).
Tbilisi Court of Appeals on Monday sentenced two individuals to three years in prison for an assault on reporters covering events around the 2021 Tbilisi Pride festival, extending their previous terms by one year and nine months.