Representatives of the diplomatic corps accredited in Georgia met with employees of the TV company Pirveli, including journalist Maka Chikhladze and cameraman Giorgi Shetsiruli, who were injured in the attack.
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Among the diplomats who visited the Ingorokva Clinic today, December 9, were the ambassadors of the United States, Great Britain, Germany, Denmark, Lithuania, Latvia, and Sweden. They did not provide comments to the media.
According to Nodar Meladze, head of the news service at TV company Pirveli, the ambassadors’ visit represents “an important act of solidarity” with the investigative journalists.
“They emphasized that violent acts against journalists and the lack of accountability in investigating these cases must not go unaddressed.
We see that Karlo Katsitadze’s department [Special Investigation Service] has not identified even a single suspect 48 hours after such a particularly brutal crime, despite video evidence confirming that seven individuals attacked Giorgi Shetsiruli and Maka Chikhladze, while 25 people were part of the group that assaulted our journalists and other participants of the rally that day. This demonstrates that this is a state crime with a single orchestrator – Bidzina Ivanishvili. It is undeniable, as confirmed by the footage, that this group had a leader whose actions suggest specialized training. Furthermore, there is the masked individual attacking Maka Chikhladze,” said Nodar Meladze, head of the information service at TV Pirveli.
On December 7, journalist Maka Chikhladze and cameraman Giorgi Shetsiruli of Pirveli were documenting violence carried out by the so-called titushky against citizens on Besiki Street, near the protest rally, when masked individuals physically assaulted them. The attack on the film crew occurred live on air.
The Special Investigation Service announced that an investigation into the attack has been initiated under Part 2 of Article 154 of the Criminal Code, which addresses unlawful interference in the professional activities of a journalist through threats of violence or abuse of official position. Investigators questioned Giorgi Laliashvili and summoned Luka Topuridze for further questioning. Some media outlets reported that these individuals were involved in the attack.
Leaders of the Georgian Dream party described the incident as a provocation. According to Mamuka Mdinaradze, "There is a 99% chance that this was a deliberate provocation orchestrated against the backdrop of an already explosive situation."
