"I urge everyone, especially European Parliament members, to avoid attempting to influence the Georgian court," informed Shalva Papuashvili, speaker of the Georgian Parliament, in reaction to member of the European Parliament Michael Gahler's comments. "It is as though certain judges were influenced in making this judgement since they were typically influenced in some way. However, this is both an insult to these judges and an attempt to sway the court at the same time," stated Papuashvili.
Importantly, Michael Gahler, a member of the European Parliament, addressed the judges deliberating Nika Gvaramia's appeal as the general manager of Mtavari TV on July 19. "Serve the truth, not the oligarch; do what is fair, not what you are told," instructs Gahler.
As for the question whether the founder of the Georgian Dream party and former Prime Minister, Bidzina Ivanishvili intends to return to Georgian politics, Shalva Papuashvili answered that he had left politics and was not involved in the decision-making process. "A few days ago, we heard an explanation, including from the EU Ambassador in Georgia, that the term deoligarchization generally refers to the control and decrease of the influence of individuals with certain capacities to affect the economics, politics, and other public spheres. This does not entail bolstering people, but rather institutions. The highlighted issue was included in the priority of all three countries [Georgia, Ukraine, and Moldova] and is unrelated to any particular nation or individual. Yesterday, however, I heard a remark from a member of the European Parliament in which Bidzina Ivanishvili was again explicitly attacked," he said.
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