Georgia - Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty

Tuesday, December 11, 2012

Latest Georgia News

Former Georgian Prime Minister Vano Merabishvili

Former Georgian PM Questioned

Georgia's former Prime Minister Vano Merabishvili has been summoned again to the Interior Ministry on December 7 for another interview in connection with his alleged use of a fake Georgian passport. More

Georgia Frees Terror Suspect On Bail

A court in Tbilisi has released a suspected Chechen terrorist on bail. More

Parliamentary Human Rights Committee head Eka Beselia (right) said an amnesty law was being drafted and that all individuals named as political prisoners would be released soon.

Dueling Amnesties In Georgia

The Georgian parliament has designated 190 inmates in the country's penitentiaries as political prisoners. More

Georgian Foreign Minister Maia Panjikidze (left) and NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen in Brussels

NATO FMs Discuss Afghanistan, Georgia

NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen says the alliance's foreign ministers have had a "productive" session with Afghanistan's foreign minister in Brussels. More

Transparency International says the findings indicate a public demand for institutions and officials to be more transparent and accountable.

Transparency: Two-Thirds Of Countries Perceived To Be 'Highly Corrupt'

According to the anticorruption group Transparency International (TI), high levels of bribery, abuse of power, and secret dealings continue to “ravage” societies around the world, despite a growing public outcry over corrupt governments. More

More Georgia News

Caucasus Report -- Blogging The Caucasus

Khadjimurad Kamalov was shot dead in December 2011

Journalists In Daghestan Face New Threat

One year after the as yet unsolved murder of Khadjimurad Kamalov, editor of the crusading independent weekly “Chernovik,” Daghestan’s journalists face a new threat. More

Georgian Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili meets with EU foreign-policy chief Catherine Ashton in Tbilisi on November 26. "Investigations into past wrongdoings must be -- and must be seen to be -- impartial, transparent, and in compliance with due process,” Ashton said.

Georgian President, Prime Minister Exchange Barbs Over High-Profile Arrests

An ongoing war of words between the new Georgian government headed by former businessman Bidzina Ivanishvili and the former ruling United National Movement (ENM) shows no sign of abating. More

Blog Archive

Features & Commentary

EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton addresses the European Parliament in Strasbourg in September.

Interview: EU's Ashton Lays Out Fears For Georgia, 'Success Criteria' For Central Asia

Next week, the European Union's high representative of the union for foreign affairs and security policy, Catherine Ashton, will travel to Georgia before she embarks on her first major tour of Central Asia from November 26-30. RFE/RL Brussels correspondent Rikard Jozwiak spoke with Ashton about the goal of the EU's Central Asia strategy, her approach to human rights in the region, and her message for leaders in Tbilisi since the recent wave of arrests of Georgian political figures.

Georgia-born U.S. Paralympic swimmer Elizabeth Stone (left) with her adoptive mother, Linda, at the London 2012 Games.

For U.S. Athlete And Georgian Birth Family, A Past And Present Revealed

U.S. Paralympic swimmer Elizabeth Stone has come a long way since being given up for adoption shortly after her birth in an impoverished Georgian village. News of her achievements made its way to the family that gave her up more than two decades ago, and ended decades of fear and uncertainty.

Supporters of former Interior and Defense Minister Bacho Akhalaia arrives at the city court building in Tbilisi on November 9.

Georgian Officials' Arrests Test Historic Political Transition

The arrests this week of a dozen or so Georgian Interior Ministry officials on charges ranging from torture to abuse of office have severely strained the country's first-ever peaceful transition of political power through elections.

According to unscientific online polls, RFE/RL readers overwhelmingly expressed support for Barack Obama. Only Belarusians and Ukrainians indicated preference for his Republican challenger Mitt Romney.

Belarusians, Ukrainians Aside, RFE/RL Readers Overwhelmingly 'Reelect' Obama

RFE/RL took the political temperature in its broadcast region ahead of the November 6 U.S. presidential election. According to online polls, RFE/RL readers overwhelmingly expressed support for Barack Obama. Only Belarusians and Ukrainians indicated preference for his Republican challenger Mitt Romney.

Georgia's Media Landscape Shifts In Wake Of Historic Election

The shock waves from the opposition Georgian Dream coalition's October 1 election victory continue to ripple through the country. In recent days, it's Georgia's media landscape -- particularly its television sector -- that seems to be undergoing tectonic shifts as the political transition unfolds.

RFE/RL's Georgian Service is widely regarded as the only objective and unbiased source of information in Georgia, where the government still retains a firm grip on media.