Mzia Amaglobeli declined to ask court for leniency

The founder of the publications "Batumelebi" and "Netgazeti" Mzia Amaglobeli made her final statement in court. The Batumi court will deliver the verdict on the journalist on August 6.

As "Kavkazsky Uzel" reported, on August 1, the Batumi courtheld the final hearing on the case of Mzia Amaglobeli, the verdict was postponed until August 4. Activists gathered outside the court to express support for Amaglobeli. The testimony of witnesses in the Mzia Amaglobeli case is "written from a carbon copy", and the charges are based on a cropped 44-second video clip that shows the incident with the slapping of the Batumi police chief, but does not show what happened before and after, the journalist's lawyer said.

At today's hearing in the Batumi City Court, Mzia Amaglobeli made her final statement. At the beginning of her speech, she noted that she was very worried about teacher Nino Datashvili, who was arrested on charges of attacking a bailiff in Tbilisi, and whom the prosecutor's office is demanding be placed in a psychiatric clinic.

Amaglobeli emphasized that the prosecution offered her a deal: to admit guilt in order to receive the most lenient sentence. The journalist noted that in the case of many prisoners, such a deal could be considered a “humane step on the part of the state,” but for her, this offer “is tantamount to being buried alive.”

“My lawyers have already voiced my position: no, I will not sign this plea agreement. For the simple reason that what happened was not a consequence (...) From the very first day of my arrest, I have repeatedly and clearly stated in this courtroom that I do not shirk responsibility, unlike the so-called victim Dgebuadze. There is a corresponding article for my actions. I am sure that if the investigators had asked professional questions and conducted an impartial investigation without promoting Dgebuadze’s interests, this case would not have reached the court and would not have been classified as an assault. He promised to arrest me and imprison me for 4 to 7 years, and the prosecution followed his lead,” Batumelebi quotes the journalist as saying.

Amaglobeli noted that representatives of Georgia’s political leadership had repeatedly called her guilty even before the verdict, accusing her of deliberately discrediting the police and the state. “This sentence will not only be my punishment. It will also be your punishment, dear prosecutors, and the professional punishment of all those who participated in this case on behalf of the state,” the journalist emphasized.

It will also be your punishment, dear prosecutors, and the professional punishment of all those who participated in this case on behalf of the state

She recalled that during and after the arrest, security forces used force against her, and the police chief personally humiliated her.

“I fell to the asphalt from the strong blows, they trampled me underfoot (...) Barefoot, with a fresh bruise, I am sitting in the police station. A man bursts in, loudly shouting insults. It’s a pity that I could not remember the faces of those who then stopped this man from physically attacking me, they deserve my gratitude.

These outbursts of shouting and insults were repeated three times, and each time was more humiliating than the previous one. During one of them, I felt him approaching, looked up, and he spat in my face. Then this man told his colleagues not to give me water and not to let me go to the toilet,” she recalled.

Addressing the judge, Amaglobeli asked that her health condition and age not be taken into account.

“I am not asking you to take into account the fact that I am a woman. Nor should my poor health be taken into account. Your respect for your personality, your profession, and even a simple examination of our evidence is enough to determine the fairness of my case. But whatever decision you make, I want you to know: I consider myself a winner,” she said. At the end of her speech, Mzia Amaglobeli called for the release of all political prisoners.

The Batumi City Court will announce Amaglobeli’s verdict on August 6.

* the activities of the Meta company (which owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp) are prohibited in Russia.