The European Court of Human Rights did not accept the lawsuit of Nika Gvaramia, the former general director of the TV company Mtavari Arkhi. The lawsuit was related to the guilty verdict of the Georgian courts in the case of Gvaramia's abuse of power during his tenure at Rustavi 2.
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"I am very sorry, but the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg did not accept my claim for consideration. One judge decided not to hear the case at all, despite the fact that every human rights organization in the world saw and loudly protested what was happening,
It's true, that it's sad news, but after the court's decision on the Rustavi 2 case, it's not really surprising to me. It's okay, the government will change, the court will also change, and we and the European Court will understand all the details of all political cases in detail," Gvaramia said.
On May 16, 2022, Tbilisi City Court judge Lasha Chkhikvadze found Nika Gvaramia guilty under Article 220 of the Criminal Code for abuse of power (2 episodes) and sentenced him to 3 years and 6 months in prison. On November 2 of the same year, the panel of the Court of Appeal, composed of judges Merab Jorbenadze, Lavrenti Maglakelidze, and Davit Mamiseishvili, partially changed the verdict of the first instance. In particular, Nika Gvaramia was convicted for using a vehicle belonging to Rustavi 2 for personal purposes (abuse of power). According to the Tbilisi City Court judgment of May 16, 2022, he was fined 50,000 GEL for the second episode of the accusation, related to causing damage to Rustavi 2 in the amount of 6 763 509 GEL. The Court of Appeal also sentenced him to prison for this episode.
According to the Public Defender's assessment, the verdict was not only completely unfounded but also directly violated "the principle of legality protected by Georgian legislation and Article 7 of the European Convention on Human Rights".
On June 19, 2023, the Supreme Court of Georgia upheld the verdict and deemed the cassation appeals of both Gvaramia's defense and the prosecutor's office inadmissible. "The next stop is Strasbourg. No matter how much time it takes, no matter how much effort it takes, I will still prove my truth. First - my truth, then - the crime of others!" - this is how Gvaramia responded to the decision.
On June 22, 2023, President Salome Zurabishvili pardoned Nika Gvaramia. The Public Defender of Georgia, European parliamentarians, as well as international and local human rights organizations, urged the president to make this decision.
