“I did not curse the president, I had unpleasant conversation with patrol police officers,” said Film-Director Irakli Gogouadze

Sopo Getsadze

According to the information provided by radio-listeners to the Studio “Obiektivi”, film-director Irakli Goguadze was arrested for having insulted the government.

According to the News Agency “Pirveli,” radio-listener told them police arrested Irakli Goguadze on June 28 for having insulted the government and the President Saakashvili.

Goguadze denied information about having insulted the President Saakashvili in his interview with the Human Rights Center and added that he had resisted the police officers.

“I had unpleasant conversation with patrol police officers but for completely different problem. I did not curse the president. I did not have any conflict in the family. It was ordinary argument with my neighbor who later called the police. As a result I had very unpleasant conversation with the police officers,” said Goguadze.

Goguadze recalled the old incident in his conversation with the Human Rights Center. He requests the government to return the video-camera which was seized from him. “Why nobody remembers the incident, which occurred three years ago, and when Ossetian people seized my own camera?! I sold one-third of my house to purchase that camera; I am urging the government to assist me to return the camera back but they say South Ossetia is beyond their jurisdiction.”

“My wife and I were mentioned in the US State Department Report 2008-2009 as a people intimidated by the government of Georgia. This fact assisted us to survive,” said the film-director.

According to Irakli Goguadze, in May of 2008, he was the only Georgian cameraman who was shooting the IDP protest demonstrations. At that moment, a stranger seized the accumulator of the camera and disappeared.

Irakli Goguadze twice became object of particular attention from human rights defenders and media. It is noteworthy that none of the incidents have been investigated yet.

We found information about Irakli Goguadze in the archive of the humanrights.ge too.

On May 21, 2008 correspondent of the website Presa.ge Konstantine Stalinsky and cameramen Malkhaz Varshanidze and Irakli Goguadze were beaten in the polling station in Iormughanlo village, Sagarejo district.The video-cameras were seized from both cameramen. In regard with the physical assault of Konstantine Stalinsky and cameramen, and about the seizure of the video-cameras, Sagarejo district police department launched investigate under Article 178 Part III of the Criminal Code of Georgia but the incident has not been resolved yet.

On August 24 at 2:00 pm Saba Tsitsikashvili, journalist and coordinator of the Human Rights Center’s Gori office and Gia Iakobashvili, Kote Stalinski, Irakli Goguadze and Maka Tsiklauri, journalists for the online newspaper http://www.pressa.ge/ were planning to make a report from a Russian checkpoint. Near the village of Tkviavi armed people stopped the journalists and ordered them to get out off the car and to put their hands in the air. Saba Tsitsikashvili reported that the attackers were young people and that they spoke with an Ossetian accent.

They proceeded to steal car of the journalists a (Ford, TBS 608), two video-cameras, and photo camera. The robbers then disappeared in the direction of Tskhinvali. One of the attackers was driving a car with the license plate number AVE 329.

The Human Rights Center appealed to law enforcers to take action in follow-up to the incident and to guarantee the security of civilians in the region.

Irakli Goguadze said in October of 2008, his wife Maka Tsiklauri was attacked by strangers in the street who broke her hand.

He added that “nobody takes measures to return his video-camera”. Furthermore, he lost job and is unemployed now.