Georgia's Ombudsperson demands to punish organizers of riots in Tbilisi

More than two months have passed since the mass attacks on journalists in Tbilisi, but the organizers of the riots have not yet been punished, Nino Lomdjariya, the Georgian Ombudsperson, has stated. The accusations against Zurab Makharadze, an activist of the "Alt-Info", and the Archpriest, Spiridon Tskipurishvili, are insufficiently justified, the Georgian Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) has stated.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on July 5, 2021, during clashes at rallies against the gay parade in Tbilisi, according to journalists' estimates, 53 media professionals were beaten up. The journalists claimed the inefficiency of investigation and demanded resignation of the government.

According to Ms Lomdjariya, the available videos confirm the version that Makharadze called for violence against journalists and LGBT people. "Makharadze led the group that attacked protesters outside the parliament, and commanded the attackers on the offices of the 'Shame' and 'Tbilisi Pride' activists ... No one was held accountable for organizing the group violence," the Georgian Ombudsperson has stated.

After Lomdjariya's statement, threats were voiced against her. The Georgian Ombudsperson will have to answer for the accusations, Levan Vasadze said on air of the "Mtavari Arkhi" TV Channel.