Protesters in Tbilisi demand dismissal of Culture Minister

Teya Tsulukiani, the Georgian Minister of Culture, is firing employees of her subordinate entities who have expressed dissatisfaction with her policies, protesters in Tbilisi have stated, adding that nearly 1500 people signed the petition demanding Tsulukiani's resignation.

On January 21, the fired museum employees, art historians, politicians and activists gathered in front of the building of the Ministry of Culture and called on the minister to resign. The protesters have stated that Minister Tsulukiani is pursuing a repressive policy in the field of arts; she has dismissed dozens of employees of museums, theatres and various entities operating under the Ministry of Culture, the "News-Georgia" has reported.

The protesters demanded from Teya Tsulukiani to present a concrete plan of how the Museum of Arts will be restored and how it is planned to dispose of the valuables stored there.

"Employees were fired because they wouldn't obey to her dictatorship. By these dismissals, the minister clearly showed that only those who unquestioningly obey the leadership will work in this system," Sulkhan Saladze, a former head of the NGO "Young Advocates", has stated at the rally.

Gigi Tevzadze, a former rector of the Elias University, said that he has initiated the above petition demanding Ms Tsulukiani's resignation, which has already 1450 signatories.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on January 22, 2022 at 01:28 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.