Police launched an investigation after Adjara TV journalist and anchor Koba Partenadze reported repeated physical and verbal abuse against him in Batumi, the Interior Ministry confirmed to Civil.ge on August 10. The ministry has not clarified the article under which the probe is being conducted.
In a Facebook video posted on August 10, several unidentified people can be heard telling Partenadze to follow them aside. At one point, one of the men uses homophobic and abusive language against him, referring in a derogatory manner to his bleached hair.
“Where should I follow you, a stranger?” Partenadze can be heard asking, saying that he was going to a TV station. He said he has been subjected to similar harassment repeatedly.
“Every evening, I encounter people who insult me, threaten me, and make unwanted physical contact with me. In recent days, there have been several incidents in which I have been attacked,” Partenadze said in a post accompanying the video. He said he has video evidence of some of the incidents but not others, adding: “I never imagined that, in my everyday life, I would need to use my phone to document what happens to me in order to prove that I am protecting my own safety and dignity.”
The Georgian Charter of Journalistic Ethics, a professional organization advocating for journalistic standards and journalists’ rights, called on the Interior Ministry to urgently investigate the repeated attacks and ensure Partenadze’s safety.
“The Charter calls on the Interior Ministry to recognize the gravity of the situation and the seriousness of the case, give appropriate attention to the journalist who has been targeted, and identify and hold the perpetrators accountable before another tragedy occurs,” the organization said.
Partenadze had previously reported being assaulted in 2023, when Adjara TV and Radio Public Broadcaster said an unidentified person attacked him at Radio Adjara. At the time, Partenadze told reporters that the person had physically and verbally assaulted him and that he believed he had been targeted because of his appearance.
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