**Government’s Attempt to Save Face Falls Flat: Lawyer Slams Verdict Against “Netgazeti” Founder**
In a move that has been widely criticized as an attempt to silence the press, a court in Georgia has sentenced Mzia Amaghlobeli, founder of online news outlet “Netgazeti”, to 2 years in prison. But Maia Mtsariashvili, Amaghlobeli’s lawyer, is not buying it. Speaking after the verdict was announced, she called the sentencing a “demonstrative act of punishment” that has nothing to do with justice.
According to Mtsariashvili, the entire government was involved in a defamatory campaign against her client, and this case was just an attempt to save face. The lawyer pointed out that the charges were reclassified from resisting a police officer (Article 353) to attacking one (Article 353^1), which she said was a clear sign that the government was trying to make an example out of Amaghlobeli.
**A Pattern of Repression**
The sentencing of Mzia Amaghlobeli is just the latest in a long line of attacks on press freedom in Georgia. The country has been criticized by international organizations for its treatment of journalists and online news outlets, which have faced harassment, intimidation, and even physical violence at the hands of authorities.
In this case, the government’s attempt to silence Amaghlobeli and her outlet is seen as a clear example of this pattern of repression. By reclassifying the charges against her client, the court has effectively silenced one of Georgia’s most vocal critics of government wrongdoing.
**A Verdict that Will be Remembered**
The verdict against Mzia Amaghlobeli will likely be remembered for years to come as a symbol of the government’s disregard for press freedom and its willingness to use the courts to silence its critics. As Maia Mtsariashvili so aptly put it, this is not a verdict but a “demonstrative act of punishment” – a clear example of the government’s attempt to save face at all costs.
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