Georgian authorities have accused hostile forces of revoking the European Parliament accreditation of three television channels.

The European Parliament has banned journalists from the Georgian pro-government television channel Imedi, which was sanctioned by the UK for "disinformation in Russia's interests," from working at its Brussels headquarters for at least a year. Moldova also denied accreditation to Imedi, Pos TV, and Rustavi 2 at a meeting of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe in Chisinau.

As reported by the Caucasian Knot, at the end of February, the British government announced sanctions against the pro-government Georgian television companies Imedi and Pos TV, classifying them as disseminators of Russian disinformation.

The European Parliament banned Imedi television from operating at its headquarters for one year, and Moldova denied accreditation to three Georgian broadcasters: Imedi, Rustavi 2, and Post TV. Due to this decision, the aforementioned television channels will not be able to cover the 135th session of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, at which the head of the Georgian Foreign Ministry will also be represented, Imedi TV reported.

"The channel believes that this decision by the Moldovan government is an obstacle to professional activity and an attack on independent media. It all began when Imedi approached the Moldovan government for accreditation to cover the 135th session of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, but the Moldovan authorities decided that the independent television company Imedi should not be allowed to cover the event," the television company said in a statement.

Furthermore, according to Imedi, they also contacted the Council of Europe asking whether the Council intends to examine this issue and whether it considers Moldova's actions an attack on an independent television company and an obstruction of its activities, but have not yet received a response from the Council of Europe.

The television company received An official letter from the European Parliament banning the channel from working in the European Parliament for one year. The decision was based on a report aired on the program "Imedis Kvira," an attempted interview with Rasa Juknevičienė, and, presumably, a second incident related to a demand from Markēta Gregorová, who was allegedly irritated by the presence of the Imedi film crew in the European Parliament, something she did not hide on camera.

Following the official warning received on April 22, the television company wrote to the relevant service asking for further clarification on the specific rules the channel's journalists had violated, but received no clarification.

"Accordingly, it remains unclear to us what specific action was deemed inconsistent with the rules and what specific standard was required in this situation. Given these circumstances, we would like to express concern about the proportionality of the decision. A one-year restriction is a particularly harsh measure that significantly impacts the media's ability to cover the work of the European Parliament," the statement reads. statement.

The TV channels Rustavi 2 and PostTV have also lost their accreditation at the European Parliament's Brussels headquarters, according to Novosti Georgia.

MEPs explain the bans imposed on Georgian TV companies

MEP Marketa Gregorová explained that journalists from pro-government media outlets conducted interviews without permission, thereby violating the media conduct rules in the European Parliament, according to Pirveli TV.

"I was personally recorded without my consent when I was giving an interview to another TV channel, Czech Television. They yelled at me because I didn't want to talk to them, not because of who they were, but simply because I didn't have time to talk to them. And after that, a smear campaign against me began in Georgia. So be it "It shouldn't, and that's not how democratic media behave. Therefore, I am very pleased that the rules were followed," said Marketa Gregorová.

Polish Member of the European Parliament Krzysztof Breza, commenting on the sanctions against pro-government propaganda television channels, said that this is only the beginning.

"I am proud that the changes I made to the report on Georgia and the five-month work of my office, together with the President of the European Parliament and the Press Accreditation Section, have produced concrete results: three propaganda media outlets controlled by the Georgian Dream regime, which are increasingly reminiscent of the Russian Dream, have been sanctioned and banned from the European Parliament for one year," he said.

Georgian authorities have called the ban on TV channels in the European Parliament the machinations of hostile forces

Speaker of the Georgian Parliament Shalva Papuashvili accused the European Parliament of attempting to "shut down free media" following its decision to suspend the accreditation of journalists from pro-government television channels Imedi, Rustavi 2, and Pos TV.

Commenting on the ban, Papuashvili claimed that "hostile foreign forces" were behind the restrictions, and that Brussels itself was allegedly afraid of "the truth." The speaker believes this move is a continuation of the "hostile decision of the United Kingdom."

Papuashvili was particularly harsh in his remarks against Lithuanian MEP and Georgia rapporteur Rasa Juknevičienė, calling her statements regarding the Georgian people "fascist." According to him, European politicians are trying to "take small jabs at the media" because they cannot carry out their threats in any other way.

"They are very frightened by the truth. They understand that the propaganda on which millions were spent against Georgia is not working. We are just weapons for them. They don't care whether this will harm Georgia," the parliament speaker said.

"Caucasian Knot" also reported that supporters of Georgia's European integration gathered for a protest outside parliament for the 456th day in a row. Activists expressed hope that sanctions against pro-government Georgian media will continue.

Protesters in Georgia have been demanding new parliamentary elections and the release of political prisoners since November 28, 2024. Security forces carried out violent dispersals of the protests, using tear gas and water cannons, and detained protesters. Over 1,000 people were subjected to administrative prosecution during the protests. The "Caucasian Knot" has prepared a report titled "The Main Thing About the Persecution of Protest Participants in Georgia".