Georgia: End the arbitrary detention of human rights defender Zviad Tsetskhladze

The Observatory has been informed about the arbitrary detention of Mr Zviad Tsetskhladze, a Georgian student, founder and leader of the youth pro-European movement Dafioni. Zviad Tsetskhladze is an outspoken advocate for democracy, human rights and European integration, and has organised and led peaceful civic movements in defence of Georgia’s European path and democratic values.

On 2 May 2025, the Tbilisi City Court ruled to keep Zviad Tsetskhladze in custody, in relation to his participation to a peaceful protest near the Georgian Parliament on 4 December, 2024. During the court’s hearing, no witnesses were questioned, and the court reviewed only the issue of continued detention, in clear violation of the right to a fair trial. At the time of publication of this urgent appeal, Zviad Tsetskhladze remains arbitrarily held in pre-trial detention in prison #8 in Tbilisi, Georgia. Prosecutor Vazha Todua argued that Zviad Tsetskhladze’s detention was justified by the risk that he might flee or commit new crimes.

On 4 December, 2024, Zviad Tsetskhladze was arbitrarily arrested by the Central Criminal Police Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in Tbilisi during a government crackdown on pro-European Union (EU) demonstrations after the ruling party halted EU integration talks. The fact that Zviad Tsetskhladze is a leader of Dafioni may have played a role in his arbitrary arrest. He was charged with organising and leading violent group activity under Article 225, Sections 1 and 2 of the Georgian Criminal Code, and faces imprisonment ranging from six to nine years along with two other peaceful protesters also arbitrarily detained: Vepkhia Kasradze and Vasil Kadzelashvili. Five other peaceful demonstrators were also arbitrarily arrested - Giorgi Gorgadze, Irakli Miminoshvili, Insaf Aliyev, Tornike Goshadze, and Nikoloz Javakhishvili - and accused of participating in group violence, with possible sentences of four to six years.

The arbitrary arrests of these eight peaceful protest participants are part of a broader effort to silence the next generation of independent voices, including aspiring lawyers and pro-European integration human rights defenders in Georgia. The accusations in the indictment seem to be entirely fabricated and politically motivated. Following a review of 14 volumes of case material provided by the defendant legal representatives, Transparency International Georgia stated that “there [was] not a single piece of evidence—no witness testimony, no audio or video recordings, nor any written documents—that would prove that the defendants had prearranged to engage in group violent actions, had an organiser or leader who issued orders, or were aware of the purpose of an organised group and its criminal intent.”

This case seems to be part of a disinformation campaign by the ruling party, which "Georgian Dream" launched as soon as protests began, to discredit and suppress them.

The Observatory recalls that protests erupted throughout Georgia in November 2024, following the government’s announcement of the suspension of the negotiations over Georgia’s accession to the European Union, which came shortly after the re-election of the ruling Georgia Dream party in an unfair election. While the protests remained overwhelmingly peaceful, the police used water cannons and tear gas to disperse the crowds, as well as excessive force and mistreatment during transportation, resulting in numerous injuries to protesters and over 480 arbitrary arrests, some of them amounting to inhuman treatment and, possibly, torture.

The Observatory also recalls that Georgia’s worsening human-rights environment is also inextricably linked to the adoption of the repressive ‘foreign agents’ legislation, including the Law ‘On Transparency of Foreign Influence,’ which came into force in May 2024, the ‘Foreign Agents Registration Act’, and the amendments to the Law ‘On Grants’. These laws severely and unlawfully restrict the rights to freedom of association, expression and the right to privacy, creating a drastic, and potentially devastating impact on Georgia’s civil society.

The Observatory strongly condemns the continued arbitrary detention of Zviad Tsetskhladze and all other peaceful protestors, which appears to be only aimed at punishing them for their legitimate human rights activities and the exercise of their right to freedom of expression.

The Observatory calls on the Georgian authorities to immediately and unconditionally release Zviad Tsetskhladze and all other arbitrarily detained human rights defenders in the country, and to put an end to all forms of judicial harassment against them.