In post-Soviet Georgia, a fledgling libertarian movement faces an increasingly authoritarian state

In post-Soviet Georgia, a fledgling libertarian movement faces an increasingly authoritarian state

"This fight against Soviet totalitarianism, and now this fight against Russian influences in this country: This is my life," says Georgian opposition leader Zurab Japaridze. Japaridze is the founder of one of the few explicitly libertarian political parties in a post-Soviet state, — 'Girchi' (which means 'pine cone') — 'More Freedom.' And in June 2025, he was sentenced to 7 months in Rustavi prison for defying a parliamentary commission run by t…