Pankisi Radio Claims It Is "Under Threat" from the Local Population

Public threats have been voiced against Pankisi-based ‘Radio Way’ and its founder Gela Mtivlishvili, with the victims of these threats urging the Ministry of Interior to take an action to prevent intervention in journalists’ professional activities and to safeguard their health.

Tamaz Margoshvili, one of the local protesters, is alleged to have stated that Mtivlishvili will be given a period of “five days or a week” to empty the radio office and terminate broadcasting. “He will leave by himself, or we will force him to leave,” Margoshvili warned.

Pankisi Radio stated their suspicion that the governing Georgian Dream party and the State Security Service of Georgia have been protecting and encouraging the protesters. The Radio also alleges that the funds for these protests have been allocated from the Roddy Scott Foundation and the main figure who also serves as the head of the Foundation, Lia Margoshvili. According to Mtivlishvili, she is one of the organizers of the protests against his Radio.

Representatives of the Roddy Scott Foundation strongly deny this claim.

Luiza Mutoshvili, an employee of Pankisi Radio told reporters that the protest is linked with the Radio’s critical reportage of the government’s activities in the northeastern Pankisi Gorge. “The Radio objectively covers and exposes state policy in Pankisi; it is no surprise that our existence is against the interests of the government and the State Security Service,” Mutoshvili stated.

As well as calling on the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Pankisi Radio has called on the Ombudsman of Georgia, as well as watchdog organizations and overseers, to respond to the events unfolding in Pankisi Gorge.       

“Pankisi Community Radio urges the government to ensure the safety and security of Pankisi Community Radio and its workers, otherwise we impose responsibility on the authorities. […] We appeal to the Public Defender of Georgia, human rights and media organizations, the diplomatic corps accredited in Georgia and the international organizations to respond to the dangerous developments around the Pankisi Community Radio and the attack on free media during the pre-election period,” is read in the statement by Radio Way.

The Reporters Without Borders (RSF), a French-based media watchdog organization, responded to the plea by Radio Way and stated, “reports about violent threats against Pankisi’s Radio Way, voiced at a protest allegedly led by ruling Georgian Dream members, are concerning. The RSF calls on Georgian authorities to take immediate action to prevent interference in journalists’ activities.”