Georgian Dream-linked MMA fighter Giorgi Kartvelishvili has announced the creation of a new movement to defend “Georgian values, traditions and identity,” in what critics describe as a Chechen-style informal morality police initiative.
The comparison refers to practices associated with Ramzan Kadyrov’s Chechnya, where loyalist strongmen and vigilante-style groups enforce official ideas of “tradition,” “morality” and loyalty through intimidation, public pressure and violence outside formal institutions.
Kartvelishvili said the group would fight “foreign-funded” actors, activists, politicians and media figures promoting what he called a “perverted ideology.” He said the movement would be “active” and “constructive,” but added that its members were ready to answer for their actions and “go to prison” if necessary.
Georgian Dream MP Archil Gorduladze welcomed the initiative, saying it was “important and good” when people wanted to defend the country’s culture, faith, rights and history against targeted attacks. He added that any such activity should take place “within the framework of the law.”
The Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association warned that the group’s stated goals point to informal action aimed at intimidating or physically targeting government critics. GYLA said the creation of such “punitive squads” is especially alarming amid what it described as systematic intimidation, persecution, torture, shrinking civic space and the existence of political prisoners in Georgia.
The announcement followed the assault on comedian and civic activist Onise Okriashvili, who was attacked near his home after pro-government media targeted him over a joke mentioning writer Nodar Dumbadze. Kartvelishvili is a friend of the alleged attacker, Niko Khurtsilava, and has demanded that Okriashvili and other comedians apologize and ask prosecutors not to seek Khurtsilava’s detention.
GYLA said the group’s rhetoric mirrors disinformation and smear language frequently used by Georgian Dream officials and pro-government media. It called on law enforcement to prevent intimidation and violence against people exercising fundamental rights, and urged officials and pro-government outlets to stop “marking” targets through smear campaigns and disinformation.
Kartvelishvili has also been linked to Georgian Dream circles and Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze. Former MP Irakli Abesadze has alleged that fighters used by Georgian Dream in attacks on political opponents — including figures associated with the 2016 Kortskheli violence, when opposition politicians were publicly beaten by Georgian Dream-linked wrestlers and MMA fighters — were connected to Kaladze and municipal payroll schemes.
Systematic and organized violence against political opponents has long been a concern in Georgia under Georgian Dream, though outside observers were often slow to acknowledge how coordinated it appeared to be. Critics point to a pattern dating back to the beating of UNM MPs outside the National Library in 2013, the 2016 Kortskheli violence, when opposition figures were attacked by Georgian Dream-linked wrestlers and fighters, and assaults on protesters and government critics during the 2024–2026 crackdown, amongst many other incidents.
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