Terje Helland

It’s been hard 24h for Georgians. Grave mistakes were made. Yesterday, Georgia lost a battle against Russian takeover - but the fight for freedom &democracy continues. If there’s one thing yst proved, it’s that resistance hasnt disappeared. They tried to bury us. They didn’t know we were seeds. 1/12

Le parquet gèle les comptes bancaires de sept autres organisations de défense des droits humains et de la société civile

www.frontlinedefenders.org/en/case/pros...

TI Georgia accuses ACB head of hiding Ivanishvili’s asset disclosure Transparency International Georgia has accused Razhden Kuprashvili, head of the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), of hiding billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili’s mandatory asset

georgiatoday.ge/ti-georgia-a...

www.reuters.com/world/europe...

Georgia launches probe into NGO grants following FARA inquiries The Georgian authorities have already targeted civil society under a number of other laws.

SOURCES:
oc-media.org/georgia-laun...

🇬🇪🇪🇺🇺🇸Georgia’s friends must impose wider sanctions against Kuprashvili and those executing this anti-democratic agenda. Freeze their visas, freeze their assets.
Send the message that weaponizing “anti-corruption” to undermine democracy will not be tolerated.
13/13

The free world is starting to catch on. Lithuania (and other Baltic states) have sanctioned Kuprashvili with travel bans for helping orchestrate these repressions. They’ve put him on a list with human rights abusers and corrupt actors, barred from entering their countries.
12/13

But his "bureau" is no normal watchdog – it’s a bully against civil society.
Democracies should think twice before lending it legitimacy or cooperation.
11/13

Don’t be fooled by the Anti-Corruption Bureau’s name. This month Kuprashvili was even welcomed by French anti-corruption officials – a PR gift he eagerly milked.
10/13

This smacks of Georgian Dream’s propaganda - painting pro-democracy rivals as pawns of the West.
9/13

Kuprashvili’s reach extends to political opponents too. He has accused top opposition parties (UNM, Lelo, Strategy Aghmashenebeli, and others) of hiding foreign funding, claiming their voter outreach was really “external influence” threatening fair elections.
8/13

By financially strangling NGOs, Kuprashvili and Co. are choking off help to communities and silencing watchdogs who’ve kept Georgia’s democracy alive.
7/13

The official claim was absurd: that these NGOs “incited violence” because they gave protesters legal aid and even protective goggles. In reality, it was retaliation for supporting peaceful protests.
6/13

In August, the regime went further: authorities froze the bank accounts of seven leading NGOs - from election monitors (ISFED) to human rights groups (IDFI, GDI, etc.) - on dubious charges.
5/13

This is part of a wider purge. Over the summer, the ACB and other state organs targeted prominent NGOs with “foreign agent” and anti-corruption laws, falsely branding them as political operatives.
4/13

NGOs called out the legal abuse. They replied that they’d taken no new foreign grants. Kuprashvili’s response? Dragging them to court. On Sept 17, a court obliged 9 NGOs to hand over data. The judge didn’t even cite any evidence – just copy-pasted the ACBs accusations.
3/13

In Sept. ´25, Kuprashvili’s bureau moved against 30 NGOs using a new “Law on Grants.” It sent letters demanding every detail of these NGOs’ activities and funding. This law - pushed through by Georgian Dream in April - bans foreign grants without Georgian Dream consent (governm).

🇬🇪Georgia’s Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) might sound like a graft-busting agency, but under Razhden Kuprashvili it has become a political weapon.
Georgian Dream is using it to wage a repressive crackdown on civil society, silencing NGOs and opposition voices.
1/13

🇺🇸🇬🇪 Oklahomans! In 2020, Sen Mullin warned that Georgia’s ruling party was tied to Russia, Iran, and hostile actors.

Today, as a US Senator, he is blocking the bipartisan #MEGOBARIAct- thus protecting the very regime he once called a threat.

What happened?

1/7

📞 If you live in Oklahoma: call Sen. Mullin’s office at (202) 224-4721.
Be polite, firm, and clear: Support the bipartisan #MEGOBARIAct.
🇺🇸 If you live elsewhere: share this, tag Oklahoma friends, and ask why your senator stands with 98 others—while Mullin blocks democracy.

7/7

This isn’t partisan.
Democrats and Republicans alike- 98 senators- stand behind MEGOBARI.
The only outliers are a handful shielding a pro-Russian regime. Mullin’s obstruction puts him out of step with America’s values and Oklahoma’s interests.

6/7

So why the reversal?

Why was Georgian Dream “anti-American” in 2020 but now suddenly worthy of protection in 2025?

Who benefits when Sen. Mullin buries a bipartisan bill to hold them accountable?

Oklahoma deserves answers.

5/7

Here’s the kicker: in 2020, Mullin himself signed a letter warning about Georgian Dream.

He said they pushed out American businesses.
He said they were tied to Iran sanctions-busting.
He said they endangered US national security.
4/7

Blocking MEGOBARI doesn’t just hurt Georgians fighting for democracy.

It helps Moscow, Tehran, and Beijing.
It undermines NATO, US security interests, and US allies in the Black Sea.
This is not “just another bill.” It’s strategic.

3/7

The #MEGOBARIAct is simple: it holds Georgia’s ruling “Georgian Dream” accountable for democratic backsliding and Russian-style laws and human rights violations.

It passed the House.
It has the backing of 98 Senators.
Only two remain reluctant. Mullin is one of them.
2/7

🇺🇸🇬🇪 Oklahomans! In 2020, Sen Mullin warned that Georgia’s ruling party was tied to Russia, Iran, and hostile actors.

Today, as a US Senator, he is blocking the bipartisan #MEGOBARIAct- thus protecting the very regime he once called a threat.

What happened?

1/7

🇬🇪Georgia’s paradox: a government despised by its people, yet firmly in power.
Ivanishvili’s Georgian Dream survives not through popularity, but by fusing repression, economic dependency, and rigged institutions.
🧵In this thread I try to explain this paradox.

1/16

Terje Helland Online activist and fella. Working to inform and engage. Ukraine. Georgia. US. I support the underdog. Always.

☕️ If you value my threads, please consider supporting my work at buymeacoffee.com/terjehelland.

Your support helps me continue informing and engaging on Georgia’s fight for democracy.
Thank you! 🙏

16/16

Georgia’s paradox: Repression, dependency, and the survival of Georgian Dream Why sanctions will work in Georgia

For a deeper dive, read my Substack analysis:
“Repression, dependency, and the survival of Georgian Dream” 🔗 terjehelland1.substack.com/p/georgias-p...

15/16