Protest actions against detention of journalists held in Tbilisi

In Tbilisi, at the initiative of the Board of the Charter of Journalistic Ethics, journalists held protest actions associated with the "photographers' case" at the buildings of the Georgian Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) and the US Embassy. The members of the Board demanded from the country's authorities to remove the "secrecy status" from the case and urged the international community to monitor the inquiry.

The action in support of photographers began at the MIA building and continued at the US Embassy. The action at the MIA was attended, in particular, by Zviad Karidze, one of the leaders of the Board of the Charter of Journalistic Ethics. The protesting journalists stood blindfolded, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reports.

They handed over an application with a number of claims to the MIA. In particular, they demand to immediately declassify the photojournalists' case allow their advocates to disclose its details. Besides, they demand a meeting with Interior Minister Vano Merabishvili and access to the materials of the case for the members of the public commission, which will be set up soon.

A journalists' petition was also handed over to the US Embassy. It urged foreign diplomats and international organizations to help in the case of the photographers, accused of espionage, and to influence the authorities of the country towards a transparent and objective investigation.

Today, all the attention of the journalistic community of Georgia is with the fate of their arrested colleagues. As noted by local observers, they have not seen such a splash of journalistic solidarity for a long time.