They are Trying to Silence Me – Tea Godoladze on Rustavi 2 Information

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‘’The government is trying to silence me so that I don’t talk about Shovi tragedy and other threats. This was the case in 2021, during the construction of the Namakhvani HPP cascade. Then, too, they started a smear campaign against me. Of course, this is related to my position and statements I’ve made regarding Shovi, Chiatura, and constructions in general. Blackmailing me with my personal life will not work. I will not be silent! Stop trying to sling mud at me to divert attention, answer to the people,’’ this is how the head of the National Seismic Monitoring Center of Ilia State University, scientist Tea Godoladze, responded to allegations by the closely state-affiliated Rustavi 2 channel, that she had been accused of domestic violence.

‘’This incident concerns my personal life and is very heavy for me. On the night of April 7, 2022, I was physically and psychologically abused by my ex-partner, because of which I have been undergoing treatment since April 2022. The case is currently in court. The information released by Rustavi 2 refers to a fabricated accusation based on an incident that happened 2 years ago. My former partner Teimuraz Shergelashvili, who is currently charged with physical and mental abuse against me, fabricated false allegations with no evidence in order to create a provocation,’’ Godoladze said.

Organization Sapari has been protecting the interests of Tea Godoladze for more than a year. According to Sapari, Godoladze became a victim of physical abuse from her partner and has the status of a victim. The accused man has 15,000 GEL bail. The court will finish the consideration of this case soon.

‘’For the purpose of revenge and pressure, the abuser himself accused the victim woman of abuse, however, the restraining order issued against Tea Godoladze was lifted by the court. Despite this, the prosecutor's office charged her, completely without grounds. It should be noted that blaming the female victim by the perpetrators is, unfortunately, an established practice.

Publicizing this case is an attempt to divert public attention from Tea Godoladze's professional activities to her personal life.

The purpose of the smear campaign is to silence a professional who always openly and actively expresses her critical opinions on the issues of ecology and development.

She has been the subject of verbal attacks many times before, including from government officials,’’ says the statement by Sapari.

Tea Godoladze said in the first days of the August 3 Shovi disaster that it was possible to avoid casualties, which the government does not agree with. Therefore, she immediately became a target of the attack from the Speaker of the Parliament Shalva Papuashvili, and other representatives of the government.

It should be noted that in June 2023, Rustavi 2 broadcasted information about the conviction of Nino Doborjginidze, Rector of Ilia State University. The case concerns the car accident that happened in 2010, in which a member of Nino Doborjginidze's family was killed. Then Nino Doborjginidze said that it was an attempt to destroy her psychologically and an attack on the university.

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