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Features Retreat but no surrender. Testaments from Georgian civil society under siege
In the course of just a few months Georgia went from having one of the best working environments for civil society actors to one in which heads of the most prominent organizations are facing charges of treason. The civic space is rapidly shrinking as a result of strong and unprecedented orchestrated attacks on independent organizations and media through the weaponizing of legislation and a fierce propaganda machine set out to silence, stigmatize and practically leave no space for civil society actors. To illuminate how civil society actors are experiencing, interpreting, and adapting to this new climate of repression, we conducted four in-depth interviews with organizations active in different regions of Georgia. To this end, our paper aims to illuminate both the risks and the resourcefulness of Georgian civil society.
Published in the printed edition of Baltic Worlds BW 2025:4,pages 4-12
Published on balticworlds.com on December 18, 2025
In the course of just a few months Georgia went from having one of the best working environments for civil society actors to one in which heads of the most prominent organizations are facing charges of treason. The civic space is rapidly shrinking as a result of strong and unprecedented orchestrated attacks on independent organizations and media through the weaponizing of legislation and a fierce propaganda machine set out to silence, stigmatize and practically leave no space for civil society actors.
To illuminate how civil society actors are experiencing, interpreting, and adapting to this new climate of repression, we conducted four in-depth interviews with organizations active in different regions of Georgia. To this end, our paper aims to illuminate both the risks and the resourcefulness of Georgian civil society.
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