"Transparency International - Georgia" condemns the dismissal of anchors from the First Channel of the "Public Broadcaster" and believes that this is a continuation of the harmful practice of persecuting and harassing employees who are critical of the broadcaster’s biased management policies.

On April 11, it became known that the broadcaster terminated the contracts of the anchors of the daily news program Moambe and the talk show Real Space — Vasil Ivanov-Chikovani and Nino Zautashvili — who had openly criticized the broadcaster’s biased policies in favor of the government and stated that the channel "fails to meet the public’s demands." Notably, prior to this, loyal members of the Public Broadcaster’s Board of Trustees, affiliated with "Georgian Dream," had even called for the Prosecutor’s Office to get involved in investigating these journalists’ cases, which was a direct attempt to intimidate and pressure the employees.

This is not the first time the "Public Broadcaster" harasses, persecutes, and dismisses employees who are critical of its biased editorial policy. Such harmful practices have been ongoing for years. In recent years, the broadcaster has shut down numerous popular programs whose anchors were critical of the government. Journalists who openly accused the management of attempting to impose censorship were also dismissed from the channel.

"Transparency International - Georgia" expresses solidarity with the journalists dismissed from the "Public Broadcaster" and believes that this is part of the ruling political force’s broader policy of persecuting critical voices and exercising repressive measures, with the ultimate goal of completely suppressing and destroying free speech and thought. The individuals carrying out such political directives within the broadcaster are the channel’s director, Tinatin Berdzenishvili, and the chairman of the Board of Trustees, Vasil Maghlaperidze. This kind of policy causes enormous reputational damage and undermines public trust in the broadcaster, whose primary obligation is to provide unbiased coverage of events and properly inform viewers — a responsibility the broadcaster fails to fulfill. As a result, a continuous protest in front of the broadcaster’s building has been ongoing for five months, demanding accountability.