Georgian opposition-leaning TV Formula has been placed under investigation for ‘falsely denouncing’ a pro-government film director, Goga Khaindrava. Rights groups have warned that the vague nature of the charges was used to exert pressure on Formula.

Several legal experts have explained that ‘false denunciations’ entail falsely reporting an individual to the authorities.

In the report he submitted to the Prosecutor’s Office, which announced the case in June, Khaindrava accused the channel of falsely denouncing him by reporting that he had helped Indian and Pakistani nationals enter Georgia in exchange for money and in cooperation with the State Security Service (SSG) between 2015–2017.

The report in question, based on an unidentified source, was authored by journalist Natuka Lomadze.

‘The truth is one: everything that was said on TV Formula is a complete lie and defamation, and it is a serious crime. It must be established who is responsible for this’, Khaindrava said, as quoted by the pro-government TV Imedi.

‘This does not constitute a false denunciation’

Formula maintains that it did not falsely denounce Khaindrava. Many commentators have also raised concern about the vague nature of the charge itself, which according to the criminal code is briefly and simply described as the act of ‘false denunciation of the commission of a crime’.

Lawyer Nika Simonishvili explained to OC Media that under the criminal code, public statements do not constitute false denunciations.

‘False denunciation occurs when I am summoned to an investigative authority, appear before it, and knowingly make a false denunciation against someone’, Simonshvili told OC Media. ‘I must be making the allegation affirmatively and intentionally providing false information to the investigative authority’.

He said the wording of the crime itself in the criminal code was ‘somewhat vague, and a plain reading does not make its meaning entirely clear unless you are familiar with how it is defined in practice’.

When Georgia’s Prosecution Service announced the investigation, it said the proceedings were based on a complaint from Khaindrava alleging that Formula had committed a crime against him.

However, Formula’s lawyer Eto Katamadze told OC Media that under the offence of false denunciation, a legal entity cannot be held criminally liable. OC Media has been unable to parse whether the investigation targeted the channel’s source or the journalists who worked on the report. Formula’s lawyers have not provided an exact answer so far, but maintain that the case lacks any legal basis.

Katamadze stressed that Formula has submitted all evidence to support their reporting.

The Tbilisi Prosecutor’s Office has already questioned the host of Saturday Formula, Davit Khashiashvili, on 29 June, followed by questioning Lomadze on 2 July. Both reports were aired on Saturday Formula.

After his questioning, Khashiashvili said that he had provided the investigation with information regarding the report, but made it clear from the outset that, in line with the principle of source confidentiality, he would not disclose the identity of the channel’s source.

‘This questioning also showed that there are no legal grounds whatsoever for a criminal investigation to have been launched […] because we have never, at any stage, made a false accusation against anyone, including the complainant [Khaindrava], and we never will’, he added.

Beka Basilaia, a lawyer representing Khashiashvili and Lomadze, also stressed that the ‘legal construction of the offence of false denunciation is such that it is impossible to hold anyone liable for reporting information in a TV story that was provided by a source’.

The investigation against Formula has been criticised by civil society organisations in Georgia and abroad. Transparency International (TI) Georgia said the proceedings aim to intimidate journalists and potential whistleblowers.

‘The concern is that, in the future, under the threat of legal prosecution, they may refrain from informing the public about possible corruption or other forms of wrongdoing’, the statement read.

The case was also commented on by the International Press Institute (IPI), which called on Georgian prosecutors to ‘consider the public interest nature of the report, discontinue the criminal investigation against Formula TV, and respect the confidentiality of journalistic sources’.

Separately, Khaindrava applied to the Tbilisi City Court in March, accusing Formula of defamation for both the report saying he helped foreigners into the country and another report on one of his film projects.

In the second report, Formula said that one of Khaindrava’s projects received ₾1 million ($380,000) in funding from the Georgian National Film Centre. Khaindrava has reportedly disputed the phrases used in the report, including statements that his work was linked to the ruling Georgian Dream party, that he was known for making propagandistic and vulgar remarks, and that he ‘owns an entire village’ in the Dedoplistskaro municipality of eastern Georgia.

Khaindrava is now demanding that the channel publicly retract its reports about him and to pay him ₾10,000 ($3,800) in moral damages. A decision in the case is expected to be announced by the Tbilisi City Court on 14 July.