Adjara media ignore pro-Russian rally

Several tens thousand people never took part in the rally of the oppositional "Alliance of Georgian Patriots" Party in Batumi; the number of participants was barely three thousand, Georgian experts told the "Caucasian Knot". The media of Adjara practically did not cover the rally.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on July 28, the above party and its supporters held a rally in central Batumi, during which they called for the establishment of relations with Abkhazia, South Ossetia and Russia. The TASS estimated the number of participants at "several tens thousand people."

On July 29, Djemal Kikava, a member of the "United National Movement" (UNM) Party told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent that about three thousand people came to the rally on July 28 in Batumi, refuting the media information that there were "several tens thousand" people at the rally.

"They were three thousand at most; the square just doesn't physically hold more," he said.

The rally of the "Alliance of Georgian Patriots" failed to arouse much interest of Batumi media. An employee of the Adjara TV Company told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent that only one story was dedicated to the rally.

David Mchedlidze, a media expert has treated the absence of interest in the rally among Georgian media as logical.

"They say that people from all over Georgia were brought to the rally in Batumi for money. Thus, as a news story, this topic was very doubtful for any editor," he told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

Besides, as Mr Mchedlidze has noted, more important events are taking place in Georgia, against which the rally was simply lost.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on July 30, 2019 at 03:13 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.