Prominent Georgian journalist and TV presenter of Formula TV Vakho Sanaia has been jailed for 14 days over Facebook posts about Georgian Dream figures Shalva Papuashvili and Lado Bozhadze.
Judge Zviad Tsekvava issued the ruling after Sanaia wrote that he would not voluntarily pay a 6,000 GEL fine imposed on him on July 10 over earlier posts mocking demands not to use an obscene insult against Papuashvili and Bozhadze.
The case comes as jailing and fining people over Facebook posts and other forms of expression has become increasingly routine in Georgia. Georgian Dream has also created a special unit within the Interior Ministry to “systematically monitor” public communication, including social media, for alleged hate speech and “offensive campaigns.”
Georgia has plummeted in international press freedom rankings. In the 2026 Reporters Without Borders World Press Freedom Index, the country fell 21 places to 135th out of 180, down from 114th the previous year, and RSF says Georgia has dropped 75 places over 25 years as “the crackdown on the press has intensified in recent years.”
Reporters Without Borders has described the situation as an “unprecedented crackdown,” documenting 600 attacks against the press in one year and saying Georgian authorities are pursuing “a policy of intimidation, harassment, and the criminalisation of independent journalism.”
The Council of Europe’s media freedom partners have also warned of an escalating crisis: the Media Freedom Rapid Response said Georgia has seen “one of the most rapid and serious deteriorations of press freedom ever seen in an EU member state or candidate country,” with hundreds of documented violations affecting journalists and media outlets.
Sanaia’s detention also comes as Georgian Dream officials claim they are trying to reset relations with the United States, despite escalating repression against critical journalists, media outlets and government opponents at home.
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