Whatever President Shevardnadze says about his own attitudes to freedom of speech in Georgia, foreign organisations have serious concerns about the country's human and civil rights problems

Pointing out that Rustavi-2 had recently undergone a formal financial inspection - during which no irregularities were found - he said that the raid could not be seen as anything other than "a clear act of political persecution".

Rustavi-2 has often strongly criticised President Shevardnadze.

It has pointed to his poor handling of the Georgian economy, his country's relations with Russia and its internal conflicts, especially with the independence-minded Abkhazia region, which recently came close to all-out war with Georgia.

Corrupt investigators

And whatever President Shevardnadze says about his own attitudes to freedom of speech in Georgia, foreign organisations have serious concerns about the country's human and civil rights problems.

Dissent might not be illegal, as it was during Soviet times, but the authorities show obvious intolerance

Certainly, Georgia's constitution and laws guarantee a wide range of personal and political freedoms.

But institutions are weak and investigating authorities are corrupt.

Dissent might not be illegal, as it was during Soviet times, but the authorities show obvious intolerance.

Russian parallels

For example, Georgia has recently attracted much international criticism for failing to crack down on violent attacks against religious minorities, especially Jehovah's Witnesses.

Tax, fire and sanitary inspections are three of the most popular tools authorities in the former Soviet republics use to shut down media outlets they don't like.

President Shevardnadze's opponents have already pointed out how similar the events surrounding Rustavi-2 are to the Kremlin's persecution of the Russian TV channel, NTV, whose head, Vladimir Gusinsky, became an arch-opponent of President Putin over criticism of Russia's actions in Chechnya.