For almost a month, we have been continuously standing by the mass protests that have begun across Georgia, during which we have seen numerous brutal raids, beatings and arrests of people, intimidation, and unheard-of physical retaliation.
As soon as the protest wave began, we suspended preparations for the New Year festival at eZo, one of the largest of the four main events of the year. By the end of November, we also halted sales and marketing activities and plans for other events.
We hoped the situation would stabilize, allowing us to meet again at the eZo New Year festival, which has already become a tradition.
Unfortunately, today’s circumstances make it impossible to hold an event of this nature. After all, New Year’s Eve is meant to be a magical, joyful, and festive night. This, however, is impossible under the current conditions.
Additionally, we believe there is no guarantee that the concept of a safe space will be maintained at the event, which is a necessary precondition for us to proceed with hosting it.
Consequently, we have decided to cancel the New Year’s Festival.
However, since the near and distant future remains uncertain, the cancellation of the New Year’s Festival places us in an extremely challenging financial situation: employee salaries, rent, artists’ fees, and other obligations. For this reason, we must appeal to you for donations.
With your help, we hope that we can weather this difficult time, preserve our beloved work — the only source of income for most of our community—and sustain it as it teeters on the brink of survival.
To simplify the donation process, we have decided to retain the virtual format of the New Year’s Festival and ask you to participate by purchasing virtual tickets. Tickets will be listed in various categories on our website. In addition to tickets, you may donate any amount you choose.
You can also support us via our GoFundMe account:
https://gofund.me/e3da0710
For those who wish to refund purchased tickets, please contact us within the next week at [email protected]. Refunds will be issued periodically.
We would like to emphasize that our decision to cancel the New Year’s Festival is unrelated to the decisions made by other actors in the scene regarding reopening their spaces. What matters most is that we all continue to strengthen the Georgian electronic scene together, face the challenges ahead, and, as before, overcome all the obstacles that lie before us.
Finally, we urge responsible businesses to stand by the Georgian scene. By using crisis-focused funds or financial support, you can make a social contribution to saving the scene.
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