Press release November 5, 2015
Georgia: Court Wrongly Fires Rustavi-2 Executives
The appointment of new management at Rustavi-2 ignores orders by the Constitutional Court and undermines democracy in Georgia.
Washington
In response to the Tbilisi City Court dismissing the management of television channel Rustavi-2 and the immediate appointment of new executives, Freedom House issued the following statement:
"The appointment of new management at Rustavi-2 ignores orders by the Constitutional Court and undermines democracy in Georgia,” said Robert Herman, vice president of international programs. “The government is breaking the promise it made to voters, which was to uphold higher standards than its predecessor in protecting the rule of law and the fundamental principles of democracy, including freedom of the press. We urge the Georgian government to end its interference in the media.”
Georgia is rated Partly Free in Freedom in the World 2015, Partly Free in Freedom of the Press 2015, Free in Freedom on the Net 2015, and receives a democracy score of 4.64 on a scale of 1 to 7, with 7 being the worst possible score, in Nations in Transit 2015.