A Georgian court ordered 30 days of administrative detention for Formula TV anchor Vakho Sanaia over online criticism of ruling party politicians, Interpress reported Monday, as rights groups challenged Georgia’s restrictions on speech.
The Oct. 19 decision follows Sanaia’s 14-day detention in July and fines over posts in June 2025 and July 2026. Human Rights Watch said he spent 14 days in detention in July over a Facebook post and had earlier been fined over other posts.
The criticism involved Georgia’s parliamentary speaker and another politician from the ruling Georgian Dream party. Some of the comments used vulgar language, Reuters reported. After the latest ruling, Sanaia said his detention was intended to silence the public and pledged to continue opposing the government, Interpress reported.
Human Rights Watch said Georgia had introduced an offense covering insults to officials. The group said a Ministry of Internal Affairs unit monitors public statements and refers cases to court, and warned that the prosecutions threaten freedom of expression.
The cases extend beyond Sanaia. Authorities have arrested or fined dozens of people over online remarks and signs displayed at demonstrations, Reuters reported. Those remarks have criticized politicians and other public figures.
Georgian Dream has governed since 2012. After its October 2024 election victory, the government froze Georgia’s European Union accession process, prompting large protests. Demonstrators accused the government of taking an authoritarian turn, Reuters reported.
Opposition figures said the Constitutional Court notified them of hearings scheduled for Oct. 21–23 on Georgian Dream’s lawsuit seeking to ban opposition parties. The court’s case record identifies five parties in the lawsuit.
