By the order of the acting director of the National Film Center, which falls under the umbrella of the Ministry of Culture, Koba Khubunaia, the employees who protested the developments around the film center during last month were fired. Davit Davitiani and Levan Abdushelishvili received the layoff order today. The stated reason for the termination of the labor contract is the reorganization “for the purpose of optimizing management,” which “makes it necessary to reduce the workforce.”
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Davit Davitiani and Levan Abdushelishvili believe that the real reason for the order was their participation in the protest.
“The director created some commission, which is vague and non-public, we don't know what the commission is, and he made a decision to terminate my labor contract. No one spoke to me. Those people who kept quiet kept their jobs. Of course, this is selective justice, and of course, contracts were canceled based on who was loyal and who wasn't. It's laughable what's happening,” said Abdushelishvili.
Davitiani says that the dismissal was “completely expected” for him because the workers who participate in protests are unacceptable to the Ministry of Culture.
Even before the announcement of the reorganization and the appointment of Koba Khubunaia as acting director of the film center, Levan Abdushelishvili and Davit Davitiani publicly expressed their support for the former director of the center, Gaga Chkhaidze. They diverged from the statement published on June 2 on behalf of the Film Center.
The reorganization of the National Film Center was announced on June 10 and ended today, July 12. In this process, the positions of the deputy directors were abolished, as a result of which Mako Chilashvili and Nino Kukhalashvili were let go. Koba Khubunaia explains the dismissal of Nino Kukhalashvili with the optimization of financial resources, rationalization, and organizational changes to simplify management processes, “which make it necessary to reduce the workforce.”
During the reorganization period, Bacho Odisharia, the host of the propaganda TV channel of the ruling party, was appointed as the deputy head of the film production department. According to the employees of the Film Center, this position did not exist before.
Some of the employees of the Film Center demanded the suspension of the reorganization and the selection of the director of the center via competition. They believe that the Ministry of Culture is again trying to subjugate the still-independent Film Center and introduce censorship in cinema. The Ministry of Culture claims that the statement on censorship is part of a frivolous, baseless, and politically motivated campaign.
