We suspect that Mr Gvaramia has been sentenced for political reasons and this cannot be tolerated - German MP

Gunther Krichbaum, a member of the German Bundestag, speaks on the "Guest of the Day" programme on Mtavari Channel about the political conviction of Nika Gvaramia, Director General of Mtavari Channel.

According to him, Nika Gvaramia's conviction was based on political motives and this cannot be tolerated. The German MP reminds the Georgian authorities of the country's EU candidate status and 12 recommendations:

Of course, this is a serious issue, because Mr. Gvaramia was sentenced, and we suspect that it happened due to political reasons, and this cannot be tolerated. I think that the Georgian authorities and everyone who is responsible for the political scene should take this into account. Because it concerns not only the independence of the judiciary, but also the fact that Georgia is trying to get the EU candidate status. There are 12 recommendations that Georgia must fulfill, and the seventh of these recommendations is that the freedom of the press, freedom of opinion must be guaranteed. Without the freedom of the press, there will be no freedom of expression, and without freedom  of expression, there would be no democracy, says Gunther Krichbaum.

According to him, the European Commission will definitely have its own response to this issue.