2025 Photo Contest - Europe - Stories

Protests in Georgia

Photographer

Mikhail Tereshchenko

TASS Agency

Citizens took to the streets across Georgia in November 2024 when prime minister Irakli Kobakhidze announced a four-year suspension of talks on joining the EU. This followed the European Parliament’s rejection of Georgia’s recent elections, amidst claims of vote rigging. In the capital, Tbilisi, as thousands demonstrated, clashes erupted between police and protesters outside the parliament building.

Protests continued, despite a severe government crackdown on dissent in late December, when a law was passed criminalizing even symbolic acts of protest, such as the public posting of stickers.

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Mikhail Tereshchenko
About the photographer

Mikhail Tereshchenko is a Russian photojournalist who focuses on social and political issues. He has been a staff photographer for TASS photo agency since 2017. Tereshchenko received higher theology and philosophy education at the Russian Orthodox University of Saint John the Theologian before graduating as a photoj...

Read the full biography
Technical information
Shutter Speed

1/640

Focal length

85mm

F-Stop

2.8

ISO

10

Camera

EOS R3

Jury comment

The jury felt this was an important global story documenting mass anti-government protests in Georgia set against the backdrop of contested elections, escalating tensions between pro-Russian and pro-EU politicians, and the reintroduction of the 'foreign agents' draft bill. The nighttime images highlight the use of fireworks as a new urban weapon and capture the dynamics of mass protests, raising questions about how democratic movements worldwide respond to increasingly militarized police forces.