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The Real Reason of Our Detention Are the Scenes Taken on May 26th

July 14, 2011

Gia Abdaladze, newspaper Kronika

I have always been thinking since the detention what was the real reason of arrest of five photographers; what kind of connections did we have that could irritate the high officials of government and why we were punished.

When you are innocent, when you have not done anything illegal and you get arrested, of course you start thinking what the real reason was. The fact is that our imprisonment was a direct order of the President Mikheil Saakashvili since his private photographer Irakli Gedenidze is imprisoned as well. Nobody could dare this without Saakashvili’s consent.

This means that we all irritated Saakashvili and did something that personally harmed him.

According to the lawyers, there is a fear in the society whether our arrest is related to taking a piquant photo of one of the high officials? There have been versions on the concrete high officials. I have never taken such photo. If something similar ever fell in my photo camera, I immediately deleted it and never showed it to anybody. I never delve into other people’s lives. By the way, back then I refused to collaborate with Prime-Time due to this reason. So, I cannot relate my punishment to taking piquant photos in any ways.

I am sure that the arrest of my colleagues and me was directly related to the dissemination of photos of May 26th. I thought a lot and came to this conclusion:

In the first place, I have not taken any scandalous photos since the August war. Those photos could not have irritated President Saakashvili. On the contrary, all my photos reflected Russian aggression and one of them was disseminated in the whole world press.

On May 26th we took photos that very well showed how government took revenge against our people. Two of my photos were placed on the website of Associated Press and then printed in numerous newspapers and magazines. Zurab Kurtsikdze, Shakh Aivazov, France Press and Reuters photo reporters also took scandalous photos.

The best photos were taken by Irakli Gedenidze. He came with the Special Forces and was in the best conditions as the policemen knew that he was President’s private photographer and nobody hindered him to take photos. Irakli took a photo which very well shows a person murdered by Special Forces. Then he sold it to Zura Kurtsikidze who disseminated it through European Press-Photo Agency (EPA). The photo did not indicate who took it but every photo reporter knew that Irakli did.

In brief, our photos were disseminated in the whole world and the magazines and newspapers of the countries where Mikheil Saakashviil boasts as a big democrat. It seems like Saakashvili found out that Irakli disseminated the photos of the protest disruption in the international press and he did not forgive him. He did not forgive us either as we shamed him in the democratic states and showed everybody that he is a leader of bloody regime. Nino Burjanadze used the same photos at the meetings in European countries and by these photos the world leaders found out how Saakashvili treated its people. 

So, Saakashvili decided to punish us. Simply, they could not touch photo-reporters of the Reuters and France Press because these agencies have official representations in Georgia and their detention could cause international scandal. They did not predict that American Embassy would have got interested in the fate of Shakh Aivazov because the Associated Press does not have official representation in Georgia and Shakh also works for Moscow office. I am freelance photographer of the Associated Press but as far as I know the American Embassy learned about my detention later. I also learned that the US ambassador personally got interested in Aivazov’s fate and he intended to make official statement if he had not been released. They learned about my detention only after the MIA made a statement but Shakh had privilege over me because he is contracted photographer of the AP; as for me, the agency paid me money only for those photos which they used to purchase from me.

In short, Saakashvili decided to exemplary punish us and to teach lessons to other photo-reporters who take photos of the ongoing events in Georgia. Nobody touched the photo-reporters whose photos were published in local magazines and newspapers but our detention was signal for them. Next time, when Saakashvili acts the same way, believe me, nobody will dare to shoot photos. So, he warned media – I will do whatever I want; I can even kill people but you cannot speak about it. Saakashvili is sure that he can do everything, can even kill and torture people… he is already sick with spy-mania and everybody who exposes him, is traitor.

By the way, I was called from state security service on May 28 or 29 and requested me to bring all photos which I shot on May 26. I found their request unserious and told them I had deleted all photos. Maybe, I had to guess that the story about these photos would not finish so peacefully.

All in all, Irakli Gedenidze, Shakh Aivazov, Zurab Kurtsikidze and I were sacrificed to the photos of May 26. As for Natia Gedenidze, they detained her to oppress Irakli and get his confession. Although Irakli signed absurd testimonies against himself and us, I fully understand him and am really sorry for him. I am sure Irakli was compelled to do it because he was threatened with Natia. Their two children were remaining without parental care and they had no other way out. When I learned they both were detained, I immediately guessed it but I hoped Irakli would be braver. However, he could not stand the oppression and sacrificed us to assist his family.

Saakashvili ordered to punish us on May 26 but if they had arrested us immediately, everybody would have guessed the true reason. So, he waited a while; furthermore, nobody even rebuked Irakli Gedenidze in his office for having published the photo of a dead person; though everybody knew about it in the president’s press-center. I know it from Irakli. Meanwhile, Saakashvili ordered Merabishvili to fabricate accusations against us; they invented unreal and absurd scenario and blamed us espionage.

By detaining us, Saakashvili warned free media – if you oppose me, I will send tax inspection, will even close your office and if I wish I will arrest you for high treason. I am innocent and I am being punished for telling the truth. So, I am appealing to Mikheil Saakashvili:

Mr. Mikheil, I have been detained for four days under your personal instruction. I have been thinking for the last four days what exactly irritated you so much that you decided to arrest me. Of course, you know that none of us has committed crime and we just implemented our professional activities. Are we punished for it?

Mr. Mikheil, I have already said and will repeat now – I will die for my truth and free expression. I will leave prison either alive but true or dead but true. It will awake the Georgian media, international society and our people.

I am true. I have never done anything against my country. You know it very well.

Letter was published in the newspaper “Kronika” (#28 (498) 11.07/17.07)

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