FUTURE OF IMEDI TELEVISION IS CLOUDY

C O N F I D E N T I A L TBILISI 000495

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EUR/CARC AND DRL

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/21/2018
TAGS: PGOV EINV GG
SUBJECT: FUTURE OF IMEDI TELEVISION IS CLOUDY


Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Mark X. Perry, reason 1.4(b) and (d).


1. (U) The GOG's forcible closure of Imedi Television on
November 7 was a serious setback on Georgia's path to
democracy that drew international opprobrium at the time.
The GOG allowed Imedi to return to the air on December 12.
The station again ceased broadcasting on December 26, this
time because news anchors and other key staff resigned after
its owner, Badri Patarkatsishvili, was videotaped in
negotiations that raised suspicion he was seriously planning
a coup against the Georgian government. Imedi has remained
off the air since that time.


2. (U) The Georgia National Communications Commission has
informed Imedi's manager, Bidzina Baratashvili, that Imedi
will lose its license if it remains off the air after March

26. We have spoken to Levan Nanobashvili, an attorney for
Imedi, who says that there is no legal impediment to Imedi's
return to the air, and in fact, according to Nanobashvili,
management intends to restart broadcasting in time to prevent
loss of the license. The station seems to have the equipment
and the personnel to do so, at least in a limited way.
Reportedly, the assets of the company are not frozen by any
court order at this time.


3. (U) As with other Patarkatsishvili holdings, such as
Standard Bank, determining the true owner of Imedi is not a
simple matter. Patarkatsishvili continuously held himself
out as Imedi's owner and was universally recognized as such.
He clearly exercised control over its editorial views.
According to Baratashvili, Imedi Television is wholly owned
by a company, I-Media, which in turn is owned 70 percent by
JMG Consulting Group and 30 percent by Universal Limited.
JMG is owned by one Gogi Jaoshvili, a friend and business
partner of Patarkatsishvili, and Universal is owned by Paata
Namsuridze and Vazha Totladze. Opposition leader Goga
Khaindrava is quoted as saying that the ownership of JMG also
includes the company Maudi (owned by a U.S. investment firm)
and a Patarkatsishvili foundation, Gamarjveba, although it is
not clear why Khaindrava would be well-informed about Imedi's
ownership.


4. (C) Reports have surfaced that Jaoshvili has sold his
interest in JMG and/or Imedi TV to one Joseph Kay, also known
as Joseph Kakalashvili. Kay/Kakalashvili is extremely
low-profile, but it appears he may be an owner of the Rustavi
Metallurgical Works in Rustavi and the Zestaphoni ferro-alloy
plant. He is reportedly a relative of Patarkatshishvili. He
may also be known as Lord Joseph Kay, although there is no
British lord of that name listed on the House of Lords
website. According to the website of Tri-Valley Corporation
(a U.S. oil exploration firm) Lord Joseph Kay is an owner and
member of the company's Executive Advisory Board. He is
described as having been born in Georgia, to have emigrated
to Israel as a teenager and then settled in the United States
where he became a citizen. He is listed as being Chairman of
London International Bank Ltd, an investment bank, and as
having numerous other business interests, including steel
manufacture and Florida real estate. He is said to play a
significant role in U.S.-Georgia economic relations,
including projects involving appearances with President
Saakashvili.


5. (U) Badri Patarkatsishvili's widow, Inna Gudavadze, has
charged that the sale to Kay by Jaoshvili was coerced by the
Government of Georgia and is part of a scheme to divest her
and Patarkatsishvili's heirs of their rightful interest in
Imedi. Members of the opposition, as well as Irakli
Okruashvili in Paris, have raised the alarm and leaped to
Gudavadze's defense. A demonstration under the slogan "Get
Imedi Back" is planned for March 24 outside the Parliament.
Gudavadze met on March 19 with Nino Burjanadze, Chairman of
the Parliament. Burjanadze denied that the government is
seeking control of Imedi, and that the matter of ownership is
strictly "an internal family dispute" with which the
government will have nothing to do. She also said she had
offered the names of people who could better answer
Gudavadze's questions.


6. (C) Lewis Robertson, who represents News Corporation in
Georgia, has told us that News Corp was close to finalizing
the purchase of Imedi with Patarkatsishvili just before he
died. He considers the dispute over the station's ownership
to be a family situation but seems sympathetic to Gudavadze.
Gudavadze has said she wants to put Imedi back on the air and
bring in "an international independent media company to
manage it."
PERRY