Georgian Parliament official describes UK sanctions on Imedi TV, POSTV as “attack on free media”

Levan Makhashvili, the chair of the Georgian Parliament’s European integration committee, on Saturday described the United Kingdom’s decision to sanction Imedi TV and POSTV as “an attack on free media”, adding that some critics of the broadcasters “could not even hide their tears of joy”.

In his remarks, Makhashvili argued that the sanctions should be seen in a broader context of what he described as a global information war.

“Part of the effort is to hide the truth from citizens, to prevent the truth from reaching people, because in reality we are in the middle of a large global information war, and these individuals are trying to conceal the truth from society”, he said.

The official suggested that the sanctions against the two Georgian broadcasters represented part of this broader struggle, characterising them as an attempt to restrict media outlets that present alternative viewpoints.

“Therefore, even in the form of sanctions, this is an attack on free media. They themselves are part of this propaganda machine - some in the so-called media dimension, others in the political dimension. So this uproar is understandable”, he noted.

He pointed to the reaction of certain opposition figures and aligned groups, noting that some could not conceal their “tears of joy” at the sanctions.

“Some could not even hide their tears of joy, but on the other hand, it is good that everything is being called by its proper name”, Makhashvili concluded.