So here we are in the new year. Yet, as much as we had hoped otherwise, not much has changed on the Georgian home front. The platform Civil.ge describes 2025 in Georgia as a year of descent and endurance, noting that “Georgian Dream has yet to achieve full consolidation of authoritarian rule, and the battle is still on.”
All the more, we owe respect to those who continue to demonstrate—fighting the odds and the threat of detention—for 400 days and counting. The same respect is due to those tirelessly covering the demonstrations: the photographers and writers who keep us informed about what is happening.
It is challenging work in a tough environment. Those who do it need support so they can continue their much-needed efforts. That is why they created Sinatle / The Lights Must Stay On, a platform that supports independent media in Georgia. If you can, take a look.
And let us hope that the lights will shine even brighter as we move into this year.
Demonstrating for freedom in 2024 — the words she wrote then still resonate today. Tbilisi, May 2024
Last years protests against the results of the parliamentary elections, November 4th, 2024.
The October 4th elections came and went. As expected, a large crowd took to the streets in protest—tens of thousands once again gathered in Tbilisi, with many even traveling from distant parts of the country, to express their discontent with the nation’s current direction. Some clashed with law enforcement in front of the presidential palace, but interestingly, while those confrontations unfolded, the majority of protesters remained in front of the parliament on Rustaveli Avenue.
Hans Gutbrod, a German-born academic, policy research consultant, and professor at Tbilisi’s Ilia State University, offered a first reflection on the events: „What to make of the day? Overall a show of strength—but not one of direction. That strength after months of repression remains impressive, but it won’t be enough to get the country back on track, without a clearer, concerted strategy.“
With a record-low voter turn out, no one can seriously claim the election results to be a confirmation of the course set by the self-proclaimed government. And while all five organizers of the demonstrations were later that night arrested „on charges of calling for the violent overthrow of state authorities and attempting to change the constitutional order through violence, as well as organizing, leading, and participating in group violence“ (civil.ge), one can’t help but wonder what would have been possible if there had been a united opposition.
You can also read a write up of how the day unfolded in the 64 project posts.
Capturing a mood that feels representative today, even though I made it back in May 2024, in Tbilisi, on the day the parliament overruled President Zourabishvili’s veto against the „Russian Law“
Picture from the archive: marching in protest against the self-proclaimed government, Tbilisi, Georgia, May 2025.
There’s no stopping the demonstrations. For over 300 consecutive days, Georgian citizens have been marching through the streets of their capital and other cities, both large and small, in protest against the self-proclaimed government. They are calling for the release of all political prisoners, new and fair elections, and the continuation of Georgia’s accession process to the EU.
Although the number of participants varies, the determination of those who show up remains unwavering. Defying current probabilities, they continue to stand up for—and believe in—a near future within European and Western alliances.
Tensions now appear to be rising again in the days leading up to the local elections on October 4th, with some opposition forces calling for a mass demonstration on election day, aimed at peacefully overthrowing the government.
Meanwhile, the self-proclaimed Georgian government is doing everything in its power to further widen the rift with the European Union. It has summoned first the German, then the British ambassador, accusing them of “interference in the internal affairs of the host country.” Unsurprisingly, these actions—along with similar remarks previously voiced by government representatives—were met with a swift and firm response from the Delegation of the European Union to Georgia, which rejected “the baseless and damaging accusations about the role and activities of some diplomatic missions in Georgia.”
The situation highlights both the resilience of Georgian civil society and the deepening diplomatic tensions, underscoring the high stakes as the country approaches what could be another critical electoral moment—even though most opposition parties are not participating, having rejected the legitimacy of the current administration.
Picture from the archive: demonstrating for a European future on Europe Day, 09.05.2025, Tbilisi, Georgia.
It’s August 2025, and while daily protests demanding new and fair elections, the release of all political prisoners, and the continuation of the EU accession process are still ongoing, Georgia—like every year—commemorated the Russian-Georgian war of 2008.
This year, however, the self-proclaimed government has been even more fervent in its attempts to rewrite history, directly accusing the former government of starting the war.
Masho Lomashvili, the 2024-2025 Bruno Investigative Reporting fellow at Coda Story, explores the dispute over national memory in a long and insightful article about „Why Georgia’s National Memory is on Trial?“.
It’s a deep dive into how „an increasingly autocratic Georgian government toes the Kremlin line, blaming its predecessors for „instigating“ war“.
„But why might some Georgians go along with the idea that we started the war? Because memory is fragile. Every time we recall the past, we reshape it, filter it through what we’ve heard, what we’ve lost, and what we choose to believe. Repeated messages from those in power can overwrite what we thought we knew. Even if it’s victim-blaming on a national scale.“
Looking across the Occupation Line—officially called the Administrative Boundary Line—toward Samachablo/South Ossetia, near the village of Sakorintlo, Georgia. November 2022.
As daily protests continue to sweep through Tbilisi and cities across Georgia, the call for meaningful support from Europe and the West grows more urgent.
Eduard Marikashvili, a Georgian lawyer, human rights advocate, and chair of the Georgian Democracy Initiative (GDI), recently published a compelling opinion piece in OC Media, questioning the resolve of the West to live up to their promises.
„If that turns out to be true, the damage will echo far beyond Georgia. It will tell authoritarian leaders around the world that democracy is negotiable — that repression has no cost.
But if the West chooses differently — if it listens to the voices of the Georgian people and acts boldly to defend their rights — it will send another message entirely: that democracy is not dead. That even in the face of strategic fatigue, its defenders will not walk away.“
A young protester calls for international support during a rally in response to Georgia’s disputed parliamentary elections in October 2024.
„What we are witnessing is not a gradual erosion of democratic norms, but an orchestrated and aggressive shift toward authoritarianism. It is deliberate. It is accelerating. And it is being carried out by Georgia’s ruling party – Georgian Dream – under the informal direction of its founder, Russia-linked oligarch Bidzina Ivanishvili.“ Terje Helland has published another valuable article on his substack analyzing the current political developments in Georgia.
„This is the fastest democratic collapse in Europe in recent memory. And it offers urgent lessons for the entire West.“ His analysis of the situation thus adds an outsider’s perspective to OC Media’s write-up of the legislative changes passed by Georgia’s ruling party since 2023.
Helland concludes by mentioning what should be done by „the West“, how Western/European governments should act in support of the Georgian people, because „… amidst this darkness, one fact stands out: the people of Georgia have not given up. For over six months, they have taken to the streets, every day, in the largest pro-democracy protests since the Rose Revolution. Protesters carry EU and US flags. They sing the European anthem.
This is not an elite movement. It is grassroots. It is broad-based. It is deeply Georgian.“
Check out his substack for more interesting articles and if you like what you see, here’s how you can support his work.
People demonstrating their support for a European future outside the Georgian parliament, May 2024.
OC Media is an independent media platform focused on news, issues, analysis and backgrounds from the Caucasus region. Based in Tbilisi, they obviously have a tireless watch on political shifts and protests in Georgia.
This week, they published an excellent write-up on the legislative changes introduced and passed by Georgia’s ruling party since 2023, which have pushed the country further down an authoritarian path.
Here’s where you can find the article and if you like what you read, consider supporting their effort to become the first member-funded media platform in the Caucasus.
People gathered outside the Georgian Parliament for an overnight sit-in on the eve of the third reading of the so-called ‚Russian Law‘, May 2024.
Today, May 26th, is a national holiday in Georgia, commemorating the day in 1918 when the Democratic Republic of Georgia was established.
To all my friends in Georgia: I wish you a happy Independence Day! Especially in these uncertain times, it’s more important than ever to remember what’s at stake—not just in Georgia, but everywhere.
A young protester on Tbilisi’s Rustaveli Avenue during 2024’s demonstrations against the „Russian Law“.
Just arrived back in Tbilisi for another three weeks packed with plans and projects, ideas and meetings. I’m happy to be once again staying with my friend Otar Karalashvili and his family.
One of our favorite things to do while I’m here is talk—about photography, art, design, the educational system, and what it would take to change the world. And of course, politics: what’s happening in both our countries and on the world stage, just trying to make sense of it all. Not an easy task these days.
Trying to make sense of the world with Otar Karalashvili, April 2025.
On this day 36 years ago, horror descended upon Tbilisi as Soviet forces violently cracked down on peaceful protesters, leaving 21 people dead and hundreds injured in the streets of the capital. Since then, this day has become one of the most significant in Georgia’s history and so again today, people are gathering on Rustaveli Avenue in remembrance and protest.
Honoring this memory I am sharing a now-iconic photograph made on this day by Georgian photographer Yuri Mechitov, that was also featured in our 2018 book „Tamar, Where Are You?“.
