The main theme of the Georgian mass media publications continues to be the situation around the Rustavi 2 channel. However, they are dedicated not only to peripeteias of discussions due to the trial for ownership rights for the channel. Some articles attempt to look at the situation in a wider context.
In particular, according to the trial, it is noted that significant improvements have occurred in the country since the change of government in 2012. "The process itself is not perfect, but the situation is much better than at the time of the National Movement. The main thing is that the judicial process is continuing, so the authorities should solve this issue in a legal way... I do not know what can be said about Gvaramia’s statements. As you can see, he recalls how things were at the time of the National Movement, as well as what attitude they had regarding the mass media. If Gvaramia expects that he will resist the undesirable decision of the court, he shouldn't be surprised that the special squad had already been brought into readiness. I’ll say it once again – Rustavi 2 should stop making statements that it won’t obey the verdict of the court. Otherwise, it will lose the solidarity that it has now in society, Rezonansi cites the opinion of the leader of the Union of Traditionalists, Akaki Asatiani.
"We managed to change the government with the help of the elections in 2012, and we all should value this. I don’t expect a civil war, as there was in 1991-92. People are not inclined toward this. The National Movement considers that the public discontent will accumulate and turn into a fall in the government’s rating. It is obvious to everybody. But it doesn't mean that they will receive those votes that were lost by the Georgian Dream. As for possible actions, the National Movement will always have as many supporters as it had during the previous actions. Therefore, they are mistaken to appeal to this. The public won't easily forget what happened in the country during the rule of the National Movement," he added.
The Georgian media are closely monitoring other scandals provoked by the recent revelation of videos showing torture of detainees by representatives of the former authorities. Immediately after these videos were made public, the Nationals issued a statement that they were fake.
In response to this, the newspaper Kviris Palitra interviewed other former prisoners who were subjected to torture. Their stories impugn the UNM attempt to justify itself. "The point is that they arrested my namesakes. At the beginning I was beaten in a police car, then on the street, and after that I was continued to be beaten in a district police station. After that I signed all affidavits and admitted that I was guilty of the purchase and possession of drugs and firearms. In 2013 I was recognized as a victim. However, today those people who tortured me continue to work in the law enforcement bodies and they even hold high positions. Gocha Gogokhiya, the head of the border police, is one of them," the edition cites one of the victims Lasha Arkania.
"It is said that they were fake. So, have these things just appeared to me?" another companion in misfortune asked.
The press don’t forget about the investigation of the case and the possible preparation of a coup in the country by Mikheil Saakashvili. "It is a mega-scandal. It was confirmed that Mikheil Saakashvili instructed the general director of Rustavi 2, Nika Gvaramia, and the international political secretary of the National Movement, Giga Bokeria, regarding bloodshed in Georgia. It turned out that all of what we had heard before was true. It turns out that Bokeria and Gvaramia acknowledged that they had planned bloodshed in the country. I wonder what position will be taken by the West after this acknowledgement, which made us forgive these criminal forces, who committed crimes against humanity, as well as close our eyes to the inhuman tortures and rapes. According to the scandalous video, their friend Saakashvili described them as idiots, and before that Nika Gvaramia described foreign diplomats as dissemblers…’’ Alia reports.
‘‘According to today's information, 2000 soldiers are being trained in western Ukraine at Ukraine-US military bases. 400 of them are Saakashvili’s militants, who are led by Gigi Kalandadze. The battalion was training to fight in cities: block streets, seizure of entranceways and the construction of barricades... The terrorist and the traitor of his homeland Mikheil Saakashvili, covered by the policy, meant those militants," the newspaper reports.
The National Movement has planned to arrange a provocation for the authorities. They had no opportunity to destabilize the situation if the government succumbs. Therefore, the authorities should maintain calmness and a balanced state... I think it is naive that Saakashvili, Bokeria and Gvaramia discussed such questions over the phone and did not consider that they could be tapped. They are well-aware that a revolution cannot be organized on the phone. I think they specially discussed it, as a new wave could rise after the publication and the people would have more aggression. Remember, the National Movement needs constant aggression among the population,’’ the newspaper cites the expert and constitutionalist Vakhtang Dzabiradze.
The press writes against this background about a possible revolutionary scenario in the country. However, many people point out that the probability of this is extremely low in the near future.
"In fact, the main reason that even the most peaceful and harmless revolution is not possible in Georgia in the near future is that there is no revolutionary situation in the country. There is no critical level of discontent, which can be reflected in surveys, or measured in figures. According to the surveys, on the one hand the revolution is impossible, on the other it is a matter of the next few months. There are no such preconditions in Georgia today and there won’t be such preconditions for a long time, regardless of the actions of Georgian Dream,’’ Georgia Online reports.
"The politically active part of Georgian society made a lot of efforts before the elections in 2012. The negative ‘charge’ is not like a battery that can be recharged in a few hours. Georgia was on the verge of a revolution in 2012. It managed to avoid it thanks to the nationals’ rationalism, who gave power without a fight,’’ the online publication reports.
"As a result, the battery has run down. It remains so today. Georgian society spent a lot of energy in 2012. Now they are at the stage of charging. Today the society is not ready to defend its position actively. It is in a state of hibernation and it forgives the Georgian Dream for their readiness to crucify nationals during the last years... Accordingly, there is a revolutionary critical mass that is impossible to be touched, or counted in Georgia now. It will be possible no earlier than in 2020, after two terms of Georgian Dream. If the political reality doesn’t change and the economic situation won’t be radically improved, and the Georgian Dream won’t try to win election again with the manipulations, in this case we should expect troubles during the counting of votes. And leaders, who are ready to raise flags, will appear among the current representatives, and new people, who don’t even suspect it now…" the author points out.
Finally, another topic of all leading media is the devaluation of the lari and its consequences for the economy of the country, in particular its impact on the investment climate in Georgia.
"The sharp devaluation of the lari slowed business development. Businessmen say that the devaluation of the national currency led to the shutdown of many important projects. Next year, the fortune of the business and the economic growth in the country will depend on the sustainability and stability of the currency,’’ Resonance reports.
"Economic growth is slowing, the currency is depreciating, so I had to make adjustments to our business plans. We hope that next year the GDP will grow, while the rate will stabilized. If the situation is stabilized it will be possible to work out a new investment policy and start implementing new projects,’’ the edition cites businessman Tamaz Daushvili.
"So, if the government manages to ensure the stability of the national currency, or even strengthen it, so next year the country will have serious projects. Otherwise, according to entrepreneurs, they won’t keep their balance and resist after another devaluation. Many companies will have to leave the market,’’ the newspaper reports.
