A Georgian citizen is facing a fine of up to 5,000 GEL or up to 20 days of administrative detention after publishing a social media post directed at billionaire and former Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs has already referred the administrative offense case against Tamuna Giorgadze to court.
Giorgadze claimed that the protocol states that she insulted Ivanishvili in a Facebook post published on her personal page. However, she argues that she did not use offensive language and instead posted a curse, which authorities are attempting to classify as an insult.
“The report says I posted content on social media insulting Bidzina Ivanishvili. I did not verbally insult anyone. An insult is swearing or something similar, isn’t it? I wrote a curse, which has somehow been elevated to the level of an insult. More precisely, they are trying to do so. A case has been launched over that. The ‘scroll-and-screenshot department’ claims that the curse I posted constitutes an insult against Bidzina Ivanishvili,” Giorgadze told TV Pirveli.
When asked whether there is an identifiable victim in the case, Giorgadze criticized what she described as a broader pattern of enforcement.
“When people were being jailed for standing on sidewalks, there were no victims claiming their movement had been obstructed. They have this practice — it does not matter whom you are supposedly obstructing or what you write about someone. They do what they want,” she said.
Approximately two months ago, Giorgadze was sentenced to two days in detention for standing on a sidewalk during a protest.
Giorgadze has published the administrative offense report filed against her, signed by Sandro Kepashvili, an inspector for particularly important cases at the Interior Ministry. The document states that on June 11, 2026, Giorgadze posted content on Facebook that allegedly constituted a verbal insult against Ivanishvili.
The post in question contained a lengthy curse directed at the former prime minister and his family. After being summoned to court over the post, Giorgadze wrote on Facebook that she stood by the sentiments expressed in the original publication.
The case was scheduled to be heard in court on June 22, but the hearing was postponed.
A separate hearing involving citizen Giorgi Melitauri was also postponed on the same day. The Interior Ministry has accused Melitauri of violating Article 166 of Georgia’s Administrative Code. Unlike Giorgadze’s case, however, authorities allege that Melitauri insulted a friend rather than Ivanishvili.
The case stems from a comment Melitauri allegedly posted under a Facebook publication by the opposition-leaning broadcaster Mtavari Arkhi concerning an attack on Giorgadze and photographer Levan Zazadze near the Tbilisi Philharmonic Hall on June 6, ahead of a traditional Saturday protest march.
The Interior Ministry claims the comment insulted Zazadze and has attached screenshots collected by what critics have dubbed the ministry’s “scroll-and-screenshot department.” Both Melitauri and Zazadze deny that any insult occurred.
If the court upholds the Interior Ministry’s allegations, Melitauri could face a fine ranging from 500 to 3,000 GEL or administrative detention for up to 20 days. Giorgadze, meanwhile, faces a potential fine of up to 5,000 GEL or up to 20 days in jail if found liable under the administrative offense proceedings.
Image source: Netgazeti
