GD Comments On Illegal Recordings Allegedly Depicting Majority MP Beselia

Ruling Georgian Dream (GD) has released a statement on the leakage of footage allegedly showing senior GD lawmaker Eka Beselia.

The party says they express solidarity to Beselia, or any person who becomes the victim of such actions.

The statement reads that private life is inviolable and both politicians and society should be united to ensure the protection of private secrets.

“We believe that invasion into personal space and the dissemination of relevant recordings is an immoral action and the gravest crime which needs immediate reaction. Consequently, we call on investigative authorities to take every effort to find out in the shortest possible time who is behind this act. The offenders should be punished,” the GD said.

The police launched an investigation under Article 1571 of the Criminal Code of Georgia, involving disclosure and dissemination of personal secrets.

Eka Beselia is a senior lawmaker of the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party.

She made the first statement about the “deliberate smear campaign” against her on Facebook on January 28. She said the video was recorded during the previous government but spread under the current one.

“I need clear answers on who decided to act against me in this form and who had the recordings,” Beselia said.

Two days ago, Georgia’s Public Defender Nino Lomjaria called on the law enforcers to promptly investigate the leakage of footage.

The ombudsman believes that blackmailing with footage depicting a private life has become a systemic problem nowadays.

“In response, we have only the ongoing investigations and society cannot get the proper information,” she added.

Lomjaria says it is a gender-motivated crime in the political space and it is directed towards female policymakers.

Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili also made a comment regarding the case. According to her, manipulations with information depicting private life must end in Georgia.

By Thea Morrison