On October 10, the ruling Georgian Dream [GD] party held a special briefing devoted to journalist Mzia Amaglobeli receiving the 2025 IPI–IMS World Press Freedom Hero Award.
During the briefing, GD once again spread disinformation about Amaglobeli’s case, distorting key facts.
“The decision to give Mzia Amaglobeli this hero’s award is a continuation of the unfair political attitude toward our country that has persisted for years,” said Giorgi Grdzelishvili, head of the Georgian Dream press office.
A Georgian Dream-controlled court convicted Amaglobeli under Article 353 (1) of the Criminal Code — “resisting a police officer.” Her lawyers and human rights defenders describe the conviction as unlawful and unfounded.
According to the ruling party’s statement, Amaglobeli allegedly “intentionally attacked a police officer,” and the “convicted Amaglobeli was used as part of a targeted act of violence against state institutions.”
Mzia Amaglobeli, journalist and media manager, co-founder of Batumelebi and Netgazeti, has been unlawfully imprisoned for 273 days. Her case involves several false police witnesses. Throughout the proceedings, Georgian Dream leaders — including its Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, Mamuka Mdinaradze, and Sozar Subari — have repeatedly violated her presumption of innocence, while propagandist media ran a campaign of targeted disinformation against her. Amaglobeli has filed lawsuits against Kobakhidze, Mdinaradze, and Subari.
Her arrest, trial, and sentence have drawn wide international condemnation, and her case is now pending before the European Court of Human Rights.
The World Press Freedom Hero Award, presented annually by the International Press Institute (IPI) in partnership with International Media Support (IMS), honors “individuals who have made significant contributions to the promotion of press freedom, particularly in the face of great personal risk.”
The 2025 laureates, selected by the IPI–IMS International Selection Committee, are: Mzia Amaglobeli (Georgia), Martin Baron (United States), Mariam Abu Daqqa (Palestine, posthumously), Gustavo Gorriti (Peru), Jimmy Lai (Hong Kong), Victoria Roshchyna (Ukraine, posthumously), and Tesfalem Waldyes (Ethiopia).
