Posted on March 31, 2010 - by Venik

Response: Saakashvili had no involvement in the Russian invasion hoax

To claim that Georgia’s media is controlled by the president is outrageous

Salome Zourabichvili made a number of interesting points in her article about the hoax by a Georgian TV station this month which fooled many into thinking the Russians were invading again (The invasion that wasn’t, 22 March).

I was in Tbilisi when the report was aired. It brought back horrible memories of when Russian forces poured across Georgia’s border in 2008, ravaging, pillaging and supporting widespread ethnic cleansing.

But it was plain wrong for her to claim that President Saakashvili was in any way responsible. Zourabichvili alleged that the Georgian leader “never knows when to stop. Like a child confronted by a mountain of candy, he will gorge himself until he is sick”. What evidence does she have for these ridiculous claims?

From the outset, Saakashvili condemned the report on Imedi TV as “meaningless and even harmful to our society”. I agree with him and would like to see all those responsible held accountable for their actions.

Far from being “out of control”, as your online headline stated, Saakashvili and all senior government and parliament officials immediately and unequivocally condemned the broadcast.

Zourabichvili is right to say that “the whole thing was illegal. It is a criminal act in Georgia to knowingly broadcast falsehoods as though they were news”. But to claim “it is clear that the president controls [Imedi TV]” is outrageous.

It is true that the station is managed by a former senior government official and has a pro-government editorial slant. However, it is normal in a democracy for individuals to move between the public and private sectors. If someone at Imedi thought they were acting in the interests of the Georgian people or the government, they were totally wrong.

For several years, my government has been focused on fostering freedom of speech and a pluralistic democratic society. We have opened up the media and passed laws that give political parties generous free access to the airwaves during elections. In order to promote and create further guarantees for political pluralism, parliament last month finalised plans for a BBC Parliament-like channel that has support across Georgia’s political spectrum.

We will continue to pursue this liberal media agenda. This winter the Georgian parliament has been considering a media law that will ensure that ownership of media outlets is transparent and that media companies owners are not registered offshore.

As for the claims that this incident has put our forthcoming local and mayoral elections “in serious doubt”, Zourabichvili fails to mention that it was Saakashvili who called these first ever mayoral elections as part of widespread democratic reforms and negotiated new amendments to the constitution which were agreed with the opposition parties.

Yes, Georgia is a young democracy; everything cannot be done overnight. But the aspirations and hopes enshrined in the peaceful Rose revolution are as alive and well today as they were six years ago.

Original article

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Related posts:

1. Russian invasion scare sweeps Georgia after TV hoax
2. Saakashvili’s Army on the Run
3. Saakashvili’s War
4. Saakashvili Finally Loses It
5. The Imedi TV hoax makes one thing clear: Georgia’s president is out of control | Salome Zourabichvili