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