Miladze v. Georgia: courier fined for TikTok video appeals to ECHR
Tbilisi courier post on TikTok
The Georgian Young Lawyers Association will appeal in Strasbourg the decision of the Tbilisi City Court to fine a courier for a critical post on TikTok.
The case concerns citizen Irakli Miladze, who often rides around Tbilisi on a moped.
Miladze posted a video in TikTok with the caption: “You don’t want to hear – don’t look and don’t listen”.
In the video, Miladze criticizes the transport policy of Tbilisi and officials who abuse their position by driving on the lines allocated for buses. The courier also scolds police officers who turn a blind eye to violations committed by officials and associates, while citizens sit in traffic jams.
After the video appeared online, police detained Miladze in a pre-trial detention center for two days.
In March 2023, the Tbilisi City Court found Miladze guilty of petty hooliganism. According to the court, the content of the video went beyond the limits of freedom of speech and expression in public space. The court fined him 2,000 GEL [about $765].
This is the first case in Georgia in which a citizen was fined for a TikTok video.
The Georgian Bar Association, which has prepared a lawsuit to the European Court of Human Rights, notes that what happened is “a dangerous precedent contrary to existing standards of freedom of speech and expression.”
The lawyers filed a lawsuit claiming violation of Article 10 (freedom of expression) of the European Convention.
Miladze himself published a post on Facebook in which he happily informed supporters that his case would be considered by the European Court.
In an interview with Radio Liberty, Miladze said that he continues to criticize the government on social media, but has taken into account the requests of his family members and now expresses his opinion in a more correct form.
