Georgia
Georgian protesters against 'Russia-style' media law mark Orthodox Easter with candlelight vigil
TBILISI, Georgia — Several thousand Georgians marked Orthodox Easter with a candlelight vigil outside Parliament on Saturday evening as daily protests continue against a proposed law that critics see as a threat to media freedom and the country’s aspirations to join the European Union.
The proposed bill would require media, non-governmental organizations and other nonprofits to register as “pursuing the interests of a foreign power” if they receive more than 20% of their funding from abroad.
Protesters and the Georgian opposition denounce it as “the Russian law,” saying Moscow uses similar legislation to stigmatize independent journalists and those critical of the Kremlin.
Demonstrators crowded along a broad avenue in Tbilisi late Saturday, clutching Georgian and EU flags, as a small choir sang Easter songs and activists bustled about distributing food, including hand-painted eggs and traditional Easter cakes.
Unlike at mass rallies earlier in the week, which met with a heavy police response, the atmosphere was peaceful. Unarmed police officers stationed sparsely at the vigil’s sidelines received festive foods along with the protesters.
Most Western churches observed Easter on March 31 this year, but Orthodox Christians in Georgia, Russia and elsewhere follow a different calendar.
“It is the most extraordinary Easter I have ever witnessed. The feeling of solidarity is overwhelming, but we should not forget about the main issue,” activist Lika Chachua told The Associated Press, referring to the proposed legislation.
The legislature approved a second reading of the bill Wednesday. The third and final reading is expected later this month.
The proposal is nearly identical to a measure that the governing Georgian Dream party was pressured to withdraw last year after large street protests.
Georgian Dream argues the bill is necessary to stem what it deems as harmful foreign influence over the country’s political scene and to prevent unidentified foreign actors from trying to destabilize the country’s political scene.
But EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell has described the parliament’s move as “a very concerning development” and warned that “final adoption of this legislation would negatively impact Georgia’s progress on its EU path.”
Russia-Georgia relations have been strained and turbulent since the collapse of the Soviet Union, and the two fought a brief war in 2008 that ended with Georgia losing control over two Russia-friendly separatist regions. In the aftermath, Tbilisi severed diplomatic ties with Moscow, and the issue of the regions’ status remains a key irritant, even as relations have somewhat improved.
The opposition United National Movement accuses Georgian Dream, which was founded by Bidzina Ivanishvili, a billionaire who made his fortune in Russia, of serving Moscow’s interests. The governing party vehemently denies that.
Georgia Tech didn’t let the weekend get away.
The No. 2 Yellow Jackets were flying high with a 13-game win streak heading into the weekend showdown against No. 3 North Carolina. The Tar Heels took the first two games, but Tech salvaged the finale 5-2 on Sunday.
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CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – No. 2 Georgia Tech got back to its winning ways, defeating No. 3 North Carolina (33-7-1, 15-6 ACC) by a final score of 5-2 from Boshamer Stadium in Chapel Hill, N.C. The Yellow Jackets (32-7, 16-5 ACC) held UNC in check from the third inning on, using 6.1 scoreless innings from Caden Gaudette and Mason Patel to salvage the series and collect its 10th Top 15 victory of the season for this first time this century.
After both teams traded runs in the first inning, the Jackets struck for three runs on three hits in the third. The inning started with a leadoff double from Drew Burress who was quickly brought to the plate by a single from Jarren Advincula. Vahn Lackey drew a walk off a full count before Kent Schmidt connected for an RBI double, bringing in Advincula for what would become the game-winning run. Lackey made it a three-run inning when he scored on an RBI groundout by Ryan Zuckerman. UNC would work the bases loaded and score a run in the bottom of the inning before Gaudette entered the game and induced an inning ending groundout. UNC wouldn’t get another runner into scoring position until the eight inning as Gaudette and Patel slammed the door on any potential comeback.
QUICK HITS: TEAM
- The Jackets improve to 32-7, the best start to a season since 2010. Tech is 16-5 in ACC play, the best start since 2011.
- Tech has won 32 of its first 39 games for only the 6th time in the program’s 131 seasons: 2010, 2003 2002, 1997, 1993 and now 2026.
- James Ramsey owns the best record by any GT head coach in his first season through 39 games (32-7).
- The Jackets improve to 8-1 in nationally televised games this season.
- Tech has now won 10 games over Top 15 opponents for the first time this century.
- Tech has scored 417 runs through their first 39 games. It’s the most runs Georgia Tech has recorded after 39 games in the program’s 131-year history and the most runs any Power 4 team has scored through 39 games in the BBCOR era (since 2011).
- The Jackets scoring average now stands at 10.7 runs/game this season. The program record is 10.3, set back in 1984.
- GT is outscoring its opponents 417-174, that +243 margin is the highest through 39 games in program history.
- The bullpen delivered 6.1 scoreless innings, marking the 15th scoreless outing of the season and second of the weekend.
QUICK HITS: THE BATS
- Junior Drew Burress produced his 17th multi-hit game of the season, going 2-for-5 with a double and two runs scored.
- He has scored 51 runs this season, one shy of Vahn Lackey for the most on the team. Burress has scored 201 runs over his career, tied with Danny Payne (2005-07) for the 11th most in Georgia Tech history.
- He becomes the first Yellow Jacket in the BBCOR era to record 200+ runs over a career.
- Junior Kent Schmidt went 2-for-4 with a go-ahead RBI double and a shift-beating bunt.
- He leads the team with 26 RBI in ACC play and has delivered 35 for the season.
- Schmidt has now collected extra base hits in three straight games for the first time this season and third time in his GT career.
- He finishes the series with a .500 average, going 4-for-8 with two doubles, a home run, three RBI, two runs scored and three walks
- Junior Jarren Advincula recorded his 24th multi-hit game of the season, going 2-for-5 with an RBI and a run scored.
- He leads the ACC with 68 hits this season, averaging 1.7 hits per game and putting him on pace for 94 hits over the course of the regular season. With potential postseason games, that would put him in striking distance of being the first 100-hit player at GT since 2005 (Wes Hodges & Tyler Greene).
- He drove in his 45th RBI of the season, the third most on the team behind Vahn Lackey and Ryan Zuckerman.
- Junior Ryan Zuckerman became the first Jacket to reach 50 RBI when he drove in Lackey for the fourth run of the game.
- Sophomore Caleb Daniel came off the bench in the 5th inning and blooped an RBI double, it was his 24th RBI of the season and his 5th as a pinch hitter.
QUICK HITS: THE ARMS
- Sophomore Jackson Blakely made his sixth consecutive weekend start, pitching 2.2 innings with two earned runs allowed and three strikeouts.
- He has only allowed runs in only three of his eight appearances this season (37.1 innings) this season.
- His ERA stands at 2.65, the lowest among all starting pitchers on the roster.
- R-junior Caden Gaudette made his team-leading 16th appearance of the season and 2nd of the weekend, pitching 2.1 scoreless innings.
- He entered the game with a two-run lead (4-2) and the bases loaded with two outs before inducing an inning ending groundout to short.
- Gaudette lowers his ERA to 2.86 in 22.0 innings of work.
- The man they call “Rock” pitched a total of 3.1 innings this weekend, allowing only one hit with four strikeouts.
- He has now pitched as many innings this season as he had in his previous two years combined (22.0) while allowing less than half as many earned runs (7 in 2026, 15 in 2024-25) and exactly half as many hits (12 in 2026, 24 in 2024-25).
- Mason Patel got the ball to start the 6th inning, keeping the score at 5-2 for the final four frames and collecting his fourth save of the season.
- Since recovering from an injury that saw him miss 20 days, Patel has made six appearances out of the bullpen, pitching 13.2 scoreless innings with a victory and four saves.
- Over the last two seasons, Patel has made 29 appearances out of the bullpen, posting 12 wins and nine saves.
- This was his longest relief appearance of the season (4.0 innings) after pitching at least 3.0 innings in 15 of his 23 appearances during his All-American season last year.
Up Next
Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate. Tuesday at 7 pm at Truist Park. Tickets are available HERE with all proceeds benefiting the Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta.
Full Steam Ahead
Full Steam Ahead is a $500 million fundraising initiative to achieve Georgia Tech athletics’ goal of competing for championships at the highest level in the next era of intercollegiate athletics. The initiative will fund transformative projects for Tech athletics, including renovations of Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field (the historic home of Georgia Tech football), the Zelnak Basketball Center (the practice and training facility for Tech basketball) and O’Keefe Gymnasium (the venerable home of Yellow Jackets volleyball), as well as additional projects and initiatives to further advance Georgia Tech athletics through program wide-operational support. All members of the Georgia Tech community are invited to visit atfund.org/FullSteamAhead for full details and renderings of the renovation projects, as well as to learn about opportunities to contribute online.
For the latest information on the Georgia Tech baseball team, follow us on X (@GTBaseball), Facebook, Instagram (@gt_baseball) or visit us at www.ramblinwreck.com.
Georgia wide receiver Zachariah Branch, who projects as a Day 2 draft pick, may have just damaged his draft stock with an arrest on misdemeanor obstruction charges.
Athens Clarke County police arrested Branch Sunday morning for obstructing public sidewalks/streets-prowling and obstruction of a law enforcement officer, according to the Athens Banner Herald.
Branch was booked into the Clarke County Jail at 1:26 a.m. Sunday and released at 3:44 a.m.
Branch was considered the No. 1 wide receiver recruit in the country coming out of high school. He started his college football career at USC in 2023 and played two seasons for the Trojans before transferring to Georgia last year.
As a freshman Branch was a first-team All-American punt returner and last year he led the SEC with 81 catches. His 4.35-second 40-yard dash at the Combine bolstered his draft stock. Now Branch will have to hope his arrest doesn’t tank his draft stock.
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