Speaker: UK and Finland Statement is “Crocodile Tears”

The Speaker of the Parliament of Georgia, Shalva Papuashvili, has responded to a statement by the United Kingdom and Finland marking World Press Freedom Day, in which the co-chairs of the Media Freedom Coalition criticize Georgia’s media environment and level of press freedom.

Papuashvili described the joint statement from London and Helsinki as “crocodile tears.” He noted that the text, “filled with false pathos” and coming from an embassy that “has been trying to destroy two leading Georgian media organizations (TV Imedi and POSTV — Ed.) for two months,” warrants only one assessment: “crocodile tears.”

“When reading this text, filled with false pathos, from an embassy that has been trying to destroy two leading Georgian media organizations for two months, only one assessment arises — crocodile tears,” Papuashvili wrote.

It should be noted that the United Kingdom and Finland, serving as co-chairs of the Media Freedom Coalition, published a joint article to mark World Press Freedom Day, which is observed on May 3.

The authors highlight “disturbing trends” in Georgia, citing the press freedom index by the NGO Reporters Without Borders (RSF), which reported that Georgia’s ranking has plummeted from 77th place in 2022 to 135th in 2026.

The statement references the OSCE Moscow Mechanism report and the report by the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights. It also specifically mentions the case of journalist Mzia Amaglobeli as an example of pressure on the profession.