Georgia’s Disputed Parliament Tightens Media Accreditation Rules, Citing ‘European Parliament Example’
Georgia’s disputed Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili signed amendments on June 8, tightening parliamentary accreditation rules for journalists and media outlets, with the Georgian Dream-dominated legislature saying the changes were developed “based on the example of rules established for media representatives in the European Parliament.”
The new rules introduce the possibility of early revocation of accreditation and extend potential restrictions for repeat violations to up to one year, with sanctions applicable to both individual journalists and their media outlets. The move came a month after the European Parliament suspended access for Georgia’s pro-government Imedi TV for one year after the outlet approached and filmed an MEP “without prior consent.”
Georgian Dream leaders, as well as Papuashvili, denounced the decision of the EU Parliament and suggested that a stricter accreditation system could be implemented in Georgia as well.
Under the previous accreditation rules, a journalist who violated parliamentary regulations faced a one-month suspension on a first offense and a six-month suspension for repeated violations. The amendments retain the one-month suspension for an initial violation but increase the maximum penalty for repeat offenses to up to one year.
According to the amendments, a journalist’s accreditation may be revoked before its expiration, “taking into account the repeated violation of established requirements and the severity of the violation,” which may also “have an impact on the accreditation of their media outlet.”
Presenting the changes, Papuashvili said Parliament had studied the European Parliament’s accreditation regulations and adopted “certain issues that were interesting” from that framework in an effort to bring Georgia’s accreditation rules “closer to the European system.” At the same time, he said Parliament would not, for now, introduce one of the “stricter approaches” of the European Parliament rules requiring journalists to obtain prior consent before interviewing MPs.
On May 22, the disputed parliament terminated the accreditations of the online outlets Publika and Studio Monitor. In both cases, the reason cited was the absence of accredited journalists in Parliament for ten consecutive weeks. Studio Monitor said it intends to appeal the decision in court.
The current accreditation system, signed by Papuashvili, has been in force since early 2023. Under the rules, journalists may face restrictions if they continue questioning a member of parliament after the lawmaker has declined to comment. The regulations also limit the number of accredited journalists per outlet, allowing online media organizations to accredit no more than four reporters.
Also Read:
- 06/05/2026 – European Parliament Committee Adopts Critical Report on Georgia, Draws Backlash from Tbilisi
- 07/04/2023 – Parliament Suspends Accreditation of Journalists from Three Government-Critical TV Channels