Schlagwort: Caucasus Region

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Memory is Fragile

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.

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A Democracy in Freefall

„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.
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16 Steps to Authoritarianism

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.
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Happy Independence Day

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“.
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4000 Members Needed to Stay Afloat

In 2023, I had the opportunity to meet Mariam Nikuradze, an award-winning journalist and co-founder of the Georgian independent media platform OC Media, at their office in Tbilisi. She shared the history of OC Media, their focus on reporting issues concerning the Caucasus region, the political situation in Georgia, and the challenges they were already facing due to increasing pressure on independent journalism in the country.

Fast forward to early 2025, erratic developments in U.S. politics led to a standstill in major funding sources for this independent journalism outlet, threatening its very existence. In response, they launched a campaign to gain new subscribers, aiming to sustain their work independently—free from external financial influence and accountable only to their readers and supporters.

According to co-founder Dominik K. Cagara, they need 4,000 members out of approximately 450,000 active users of the platform. I’m one of them … will you join too?

Mariam Nikuradze, co-founder of OC Media, Tbilisi, May 2023