Tbilisi. On the occasion of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, one of the main landmarks of the Georgian capital, the TV tower, was lit up in orange once again. “With this symbolic gesture, the capital of Georgia joined the global campaign against gender-based violence. The campaign started on 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, and will last for 16 days. The initiative, which has already become a tradition, has been implemented by UN Women with the support of Tbilisi City Hall since 2016”. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Tbilisi. Today is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women.  “Violence against women is a widespread problem. In Georgia, 1 in 5 women report having experienced sexual violence and/or sexual harassment at least once in their life - including sexual abuse as a child”. Find out more… Source: eu4georgia.eu

Tbilisi. The Social Justice Center responds to a statement of Irakli Garibashvili in regard to tightening of a drug policy. “We consider that use of a repression and punishment-oriented rhetoric by the Prime Minister is extremely problematic. Instead of promoting a care-oriented policy, the statement of the Prime Minister causes stigmatization of drug users and their further exclusion from the society, while opinions expressed in the context of so-called prescription drug addiction are not aimed at elimination of root causes of the problem”, - is noted in the statement. Read more… Source: socialjustice.org.ge

Tbilisi. An organization “Sapari” publishes a study: Human rights defenders needs assessment in Georgia. “Human rights defenders play an important role in the democratization process and often experience violence, imprisonment, torture, defamation, expulsion from workspace, restriction of freedom of movement, while in certain countries death and enforced disappearance. They confront numerous risks and dangers in recent years. Often threats posed to human rights defenders are not accidental; in most cases, violent attack is a deliberate and well-planned response to their activity. These challenges require introduction of comprehensive and dynamic strategies for security in the daily work of human rights defenders. It is no longer sufficient to give a simple piece of advice to human rights defenders “to take care of themselves”. Good management of their security and a specific strategy is needed”. Read more… Source: sapari.ge

Tbilisi. The Social Justice Center publishes an analytical document: Parental leave before and after the labor reform 2020. “The main problem for those employed is remuneration of a parental leave, which envisages one-time payment of GEL 1 000 by the state for the entire duration of the leave. It is obvious that in the circumstances of minimum remuneration parent is unable to provide adequate care for child, which fact ultimately results in incomplete use of a parental leave, return to work as quickly as possible, and, as a matter of fact, restriction of the right to a parental leave. The 2020 reform allowed fathers to take a paternity leave to care for child, however, at present, mother and father of child are unable to take a parental leave simultaneously. Despite small positive improvements entailed by the labor reform, the legislative standard of a parental leave still fails to ensure adequate protection and execution of the right to fair labor, as well as equality of those employed”. Read more… Source: socialjustice.org.ge

Tbilisi. On November 15, 2021, the Public Defender of Georgia, for the first time in the history of the Public Defender’s Office, has started fulfilling the duties of a member of the Board of Directors of the International Ombudsman Institute (IOI). The Public Defender’s Office will represent the European region in the Board. The Office was elected a member of the European region in 2019. The Board of Directors oversees the organization's activities and makes decisions about its future activities. Read more… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. According to information released by ISFED, two citizens have been reinstated to their jobs and got compensated for the forced loss with the help of the organization. “As plaintiffs state, their alleged political persecution started right after they rejected a proposal of Giorgi Tatuashvili, Mayor of Dmanisi Municipality, to be involved in the pre-election campaign. The decision was made unjustifiably and without proper study of legal grounds". The organization continues to provide free legal assistance to those dismissed unlawfully. Read more…  Source: The website of the organization on a social network

Tbilisi. The undersigned civil society organizations express grave concern regarding the frequent verbal assaults against the Ombudsperson of Georgia. “The office of the Public Defender of Georgia is the only independent constitutional institution in the country, which, in these circumstances of the ongoing state capture, is beyond the control of the ruling party. All impartial observers recognize that the activities of the Public Defender adhere to the highest standards of independence and professionalism. A clear testimony of this are the recent statements by the US State Department , Members of the European Parliament or Amnesty International. We, the undersigned civil society organizations, call on the government and the ruling party to stop their attacks against the Public Defender of Georgia and create all conditions necessary for its continued and unhindered work”.  Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Tbilisi. The Social Justice Center has prepared a brochure that aims at informing society about legal restrictions and penalties related to narcotic drugs. “A number of legislative changes aimed at introducing liberal approaches have been implemented in recent years in the field of drug policy, in line with the decisions made by the Constitutional Court. The amendments concerned, inter alia, the regulation of marijuana consumption. Regrettably, however, public perceptions pertaining to drug-related crimes or offenses often are not in conformity with the current legislative framework”, - is stated on the website of the organization. Read more… Source: socialjustice.org.ge

Tbilisi. With the assistance of “Rights Georgia”, a citizen of the Arab Republic of Egypt, won a dispute with the Public Service Development Agency (PSDA) regarding a Short term Residence Permit. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Tbilisi. In March 2021, the Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association (GYLA), in collaboration with the Office of the Public Defender of Georgia and with the support of USAID/PROLoG, started implementation of a pilot project that aimed at providing legal assistance to prisoners.  “In accordance with preliminarily elaborated criteria, there were selected cases of a total of 10 prisoners, who got subjected to various measures of disciplinary responsibility. In the court, prisoners were represented by GYLA. By this time, hearings of 5 cases have already been completed in Rustavi and Tbilisi city courts. In all five cases, courts satisfied claims and, respectively, imposition of disciplinary sanctions on prisoners by specific penitentiary institutions was declared unlawful. Legal proceedings on the other five cases are continued so far. The Office of the Public Defender and GYLA anticipate that the pilot project they launched and positive outcomes achieved, as well as standards set by court, will have a positive impact on the existing practice of applying disciplinary measures against prisoners in penitentiary institutions”. Read more… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. The Public Defender of Georgia would like to respond to the statement made by Irakli Kobakhidze, Chairman of the Georgian Dream political movement of citizens, in which he speaks about the possible responsibility of the Public Defender and doctors invited by her. This rhetoric goes beyond the legal framework, represents an attempt to attack and intimidate an independent constitutional body and its experts, and contradicts national and international human rights obligations. Read more… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. According to information released by the Social Justice Center, on November 18, the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development refused to transfer a mosque, located in Marneuli, to a religious organization - an unregistered union “Imam Ali Mosque” for its use. “The Ministry once again based this decision on the unfair and discriminatory argumentation that within the Muslim community, the only religious organization, recognized by the state, is LEPL “The Highest Administration of all Muslims in Georgia” (hereinafter referred to as the Administration), which has the legitimacy to acquire rights to historic religious buildings and enter into legal relations with the state. Given the fact that the Administration has neither legal and nor actual connection to the Imam Ali Mosque, this decision is another example of arbitrary and discriminatory interference of the state into the area of freedom of religion”. Read more… Source: socialjustice.org.ge

Tbilisi. With the financial support of the Open Society Georgia Foundation, Mariam Natroshvili collected oral stories of people becoming homeless and published them in a book. “It is one step, one story from a roof over your head to homelessness in Georgia. Some of the heroes of stories gathered here once had a house, but today they live in a shelter. We have collected these stories there. Shelters scattered on the outskirts of the city enclose a lot of different and, at the same time, similar adventures”. Read more… Source: The website of the Open Society Georgia Foundation on a social network

Tbilisi. According to IDFI’s assessment, the case of Mikheil Saakashvili is being considered in violation of the right to a fair trial. “Mentioned harms not only the accused, but the reputation of the Court and the principle of publicity of trials, as well as establishes a dangerous precedent”. Read more… Source: idfi.ge

Tbilisi. Public Defender states restricting the 3rd President of Georgia, Mikheil Saakashvili, from participating in his own trial grossly violates the right to a fair trial enshrined in the Constitution of Georgia and the European Convention. “The Public Defender calls on the Special Penitentiary Service to properly and conscientiously perform its rights and duties and ensure that Mikheil Saakashvili is brought before court, by providing appropriate guarantees for his health and safety. The Public Defender also calls on the court to give the accused the opportunity to state his position, participate in the examination of evidence and protect his rights within the framework of all three ongoing cases”, is noted in the statement. Read more… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. According to the information of the IDFI, on November 25, 2021, the Supreme Court of Russia will consider the claim for liquidation of the Society Memorial, filed by the Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation.  “Founded in 1989, the Society Memorial is still actively researching totalitarianism and aims to raise public awareness not only in Russia but also around the world. The Institute for Development of Freedom of Information (IDFI) and Society Memorial have been working together for years - especially on the issue of mass graves of victims of the Political repressions in the Soviet Union, about which Memorial has a great deal of experience. The attack on the Society Memorial is a clear act of revenge against a leading human rights organization aimed at suppressing a powerful voice that, for more than 30 years, has exposed the Soviet criminal system through documentary sources and high-quality research”, is noted in the statement. Read more… Source: idfi.ge

Tbilisi. The Public Defender has created a group of multi-profile experts aiming to monitor medical services of Mikheil Saakashvili. “On November 16, 2021, the Public Defender convened a group of multi-profile medical experts in order to monitor adequacy and timeliness of medical services provided to accused/convicted Mikheil Saakashvili, the third President of Georgia, by the Ministry of Justice/Special Penitentiary Service. The goal of the group is also to assess how feasible the medical facility N18 is to ensure protection of the right of Mikheil Saakashvili to health care at present and whether it will be possible to deliver adequate medical services at this facility after termination of a lengthy hunger strike by the prisoner, as it is demanded by the European Court of Human Rights in its November 10 ruling”. Read more… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. On November 15, 2021, Members of the European Parliament (2019-2024), Marina Kaljurand, Chair of the Delegation for relations with the South Caucasus, and Sven Mikser, European Parliament's Standing Rapporteur on Georgia, issued a joint statement on the importance of the role of the Public Defender of Georgia. “We strongly support the work of the Public Defender's Office, which plays a crucial role in Georgian society. Ms Nino Lomjaria and her Office deserve praise for their work, and attacks on their independence are of always of concern wherever they come from”, is noted in the statement. Read more… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. The Public Defender is responding to the various opinions expressed around the multifunctional council created by the Ministry of Justice and believes that the Ministry of Justice/Special Penitentiary Service should ensure the full protection of Mikheil Saakashvili's health and make the work of the multifunctional council more systematic and effective. Read more… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. On November 15, 2021, the Institute for Development of Freedom of Information (IDFI) conducted training on effective oversight, data extraction methods and the data visualization for participants of the Certification Program in Fighting Corruption. Read more… Source: idfi.ge

Tbilisi. Public Defender of Georgia releases a statement on insulting Campaign against employee of Penitentiary Institution. “The Public Defender considers that such a massive and gross interference in an area protected by the official's right to privacy before the end of the investigation is unacceptable, especially given that the information spread in the media space has not been verified. At the same time, the Public Defender reiterates the need to protect the psycho-emotional state of the juvenile living in the family of the addressee of the campaign and, considering his/her best interests, calls on the public to refrain from spreading abusive inscriptions and posters against the employee of the Penitentiary Service in public space, which may incite, inter alia, child abuse, bullying and other actions”. Read more… Source: ombudsman.ge