Expansion of the CSO Meter – a tool for monitoring of an enabling environment of civil society organizations is intended. More than 800 Eastern European organizations participated in development of the instrument. We remind you that this tool is based on international standards and covers 10 different areas and indicators that are used to measure an enabling environment of CSOs in terms of both legislation and practice. CSO meter is divided into 2 main parts: 1. Fundamental rights and freedoms, which constitute the basis of existence of civil society. 2. Necessary conditions, which provide additional support and are important for development of civil society. There are prepared regional reports on the basis of it, including those about Georgia. In Georgia, the study is carried out by the Civil Society Institute (CSI) in cooperation with the European Center for Non-for-Profit Law (ECNL). As mentioned above, it is intended to refine the tool in the near future. In particular, ECNL, together with the Civil Society Institute and other partners, plans to add a system for evaluation of scores to the tool. This will allow interested individuals and parties to compare results of the study by years, areas, countries. Besides, there will be expanded the area of the study of the tool in coming years - for example, evaluation of an influence on civil groups through digital technology or artificial intelligence. It is also planned to expand the CSO Meter as a means of monitoring, as well as circle of users - CSOs and activists in target countries. New initiatives and changes will be carried out within the framework of the project – “CSO Meter: A Compass To Conducive Environment And CSO Empowerment”. It is implemented by the European Center for Non-for-Profit Law (ECNL) with financial support from the EU and in collaboration with partner organizations: Transparency International - Armenia (TIAC); MG Consulting LLC (Azerbaijan), the Civil Society Institute (Georgia), Promo-LEX Association (Moldova), the Ukrainian Center for Independent Political Research (Ukraine).

Tbilisi. The Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association (GYLA) publishes a study – “Government in ordinary and emergency situations – non-transparency, unpreparedness and prescriptions”. “While working on the document, there have been revealed shortcomings at both operational and normative levels of activity of the Government. As it turned out, Georgia was unprepared to declare a state of emergency not only in terms of legislation, but also with regard to epidemiological matters, which made declaration of a state of emergency and interference with human rights in an intensive and undesirable manner inevitable”. Read more… Source: gyla.ge

Samtskhe-Javakheti. According to the information of the Transparency International Georgia Four persons convicted for violations in the state procurements and unlawful misappropriation of budget funds received GEL 7 442 197 from 80 state procurements.  Recommendations: “Receiving millions of GEL from public procurement by people convicted of corruption contradicts both the best international practice in the field of procurement and the recommendations of Georgia's partner international organizations. The Anti-Corruption Network of Eastern Europe and Central Asia and the Council of Europe advise Georgia to limit the participation of persons involved in corruption in government procurements and to extend these restrictions to both the company and the owners of the company. Amendments to Georgia's public procurement legislation should be introduced as soon as possible, restricting companies and their owners convicted of corruption participating in public procurement for at least a period of time until their convictions are disclaimed. In Public procurement, contractors should be prohibited to use the companies as subcontractors, whose owners have been convicted of corruption or fraud”. Read more… Source: transparency.ge

Tbilisi. Part of civil society organizations releases a statement: The High Council of Justice continues to take damaging steps for the judiciary. “On June 17, there takes place a sitting of the High Council of Justice, where a decision on up to 100 vacancies of judges is going to be made. Out of them, 9 candidates for judges of the Supreme Court will be presented to the Parliament today. Taking HR related decisions of such importance at an accelerated pace without implementation of in-depth judicial reforms is extremely detrimental to interests of the judiciary. We consider that actions of the Council may raise the issue of legitimacy of judges, appointed under these conditions, in the future”, - is noted in the statement. Read more… Source: transparency.ge

Tbilisi. Transparency International Georgia (TI Georgia) has prepared the report on the implementation of parliamentary control within the framework of the project, Parliamentary Control Assessment in Georgia, with the assistance from the Good Governance Initiative (GGI) of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). “The study provides the assessment of the parliamentary control carried out during the period between 1 January 2019 and 1 October 2020. The new Rules of Procedure of the Parliament of Georgia was a step forward towards the enhancement of parliamentary control, which manifested in improved statistics on the use of specific parliamentary oversight mechanisms. Nevertheless, parliamentary control is weak while challenges with the accountability of the parliament and government members in the process of parliamentary control as well as the lack of legislative guarantees for improving the rights of the political opposition remain serious”. Read more… Source: transparency.ge

Adjara. According to the information of the Transparency International Georgia the companies of the former member of Batumi City Council - Nukri Dolidze, Bondi 2009 and Monoliti 2005 are one of the major implementers of large infrastructure projects in Adjara. “We call upon: The State Security Service, to study the non-competitive tenders that resulted in signing the contracts worth of millions with Monoliti 2005 and Bondi 2009; Batumi City Hall, Civil Infrastructure and Amenity Service N(N)LE, and Adjara Roads Department to ensure a competitive environment during the implementation of state procurements; The Civil Service Bureau, to study the asset declaration submitted by Levan Dolidze in 2021 and inform the public about the results”. Read more… Source: transparency.ge

Tbilisi. EU4Environment is launching Industrial Waste Mapping in Rustavi and Zestaponi municipalities in 🇬🇪Georgia. “This work aims to identify, assess, and map the waste streams of the local manufacturing enterprises. Its main goal is to develop options for an improved resource efficiency and introduction of circular economy principles and practices”. Read more… Source: www.eu4environment.org

Tbilisi. According to the Institute for Development of Freedom of Information (IDFI), the Parliament of Georgia approved amendments to the Law on Information Security by 77 votes to 2 in the third reading, which amendments contradict certain requirements of the EU Directive (Network and Information Security (NIS) directive). “Initiated changes have been the subject of extensive discussions and criticism within civil society, private sector and experts of the field since the day of registration. IDFI actively participated in the process of revision of the bill, as well as study and analysis of risks associated with changes. Amendments, adopted by the Parliament, cardinally change the cybersecurity system of Georgia and contain significant risks”, - is noted in the statement. Read more... Source: idfi.ge

Tbilisi. According to information released by Transparency International Georgia, there are about 3,200 entities that are registered in Georgia and have links with offshore companies. “Within the framework of the survey we managed to identify 10 offshore companies that are related to Bidzina Ivanishvili. In 2012-2020 years, 6 offshore companies received state property via direct privatization mode, in three of which cases the price of the property was symbolic - one Georgian lari. While 15 offshore companies received GEL 77 million worth of property through an auction. Officials can secretly participate in state projects, procurement and privatization via offshore companies, which is a contributing factor to “elite corruption”. We recommend to make sure Georgia complies with recommendations of the Anti-Corruption Network of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and demands disclosure of actual owners of offshore companies at least in the cases when these companies or their subsidiaries participate in privatization of state property, state procurement or any other state-funded program”, - is stated on the website of the organization. Read more… Source: transparency.ge

Tbilisi. The Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association (GYLA) has submitted a report on amendments to the Election Code to the Parliament. The organization supports improvement of the election legislation and reflection of a large part of the April 19 document of Charles Michel, President of the European Council, in it, however, GYLA has comments related to the bill on the following issues: Staffing of district commissions; Control of the will of the electorate; Electoral system of local self-government; Deadlines for appealing election disputes; Mandatory recount; Read more… Source: gyla.ge

Tbilisi. The Coalition responds to a competition of judges of the Supreme Court and addresses to the Government to conduct the process of election of judges. The Coalition for an Independent and Transparent Judiciary Calls on the Government to conduct the process of election of judges of the Supreme Court on the basis of a political consensus between the parliamentary majority and the opposition. Otherwise, not take a decision on this issue till the fundamental justice reform is carried out. Read more… Source: socialjustice.org.ge

Tbilisi. The Coalition for an Independent and Transparent Judiciary calls on the President of Georgia to take into consideration challenges that the judiciary faces, as well as the special role of the Constitutional Court and act in the spirit of the Constitution of Georgia. “On July 26, the term of office of Tamaz Tsabutashvili, a judge of the Constitutional Court of Georgia, expires. The new member of the court must be appointed by the President of Georgia and, according to legislation, the new member must be assigned within the period from June 26 to July 16. It is important to make sure that the President provides a transparent and inclusive process for selection of a member of the Constitutional Court, so that public has confidence in both the process and the candidate selected as a result of it”. Read more… Source: www.coalition.ge

Tbilisi. The Institute for Development of Freedom of Information (IDFI) publishes a report: Access to public information in Georgia 2020. “The organization considers that in 2020, the most closed public institutions were the administration of the Government of Georgia and the entire system of the Ministry of Justice. Out of 6 258 requests sent to 285 public institutions in 2020, IDFI received replies on 5 000 applications (80%). The vast majority of public institutions (30%) left the request unanswered or refused to provide contracts signed with those employed in advisor, expert and consultant positions. In 2020, 19 public institutions released public information in full and complying with a deadline of 10 days. Among them were: State Inspector’s Service, Public Defender’s Office, National Statistics Office, and Department of Roads”, - is stated on the website of the organization. Read more… Source: idfi.ge

Tbilisi. The Georgian National Communications Commission (GNCC), based on the appeal of the Public Defender's Office, examined the programme aired by Alt Info Ltd and found that the programme seriously harmed both juvenile and adult viewers. According to the decision of the Commission, administrative responsibility was imposed on Alt Info Ltd for violating the Law of Georgia on Broadcasting. Read more… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. Read the Brief Overview of Recent Developments in the Field of Personal Data Protection published by the Institute for Development of Freedom of Information. “This report evaluates the state of the art and progress in implementing the main priorities of the Association Agenda and HR Action Plan related to personal data protection. It also summarizes the significant developments and challenges, identifies possible drives for change, and provides recommendations on the most pressing issues related to data protection”. Read more… Source: idfi.ge

Tbilisi. The Institute for Development of Freedom of Information (IDFI) publishes a study: One year of the de facto state of emergency in Georgia and human rights during the pandemic. According to the study, “The Parliament fails to perform an effective control of executive authorities during the pandemic. The curfew does not meet the principle of proportionality. There are questions as to how effective the curfew is in terms of persuading population to stay at home. More than 100 000 fines have been imposed for violation of COVID regulations. About 60 000 of them are unlawful. The amount of fines exceeds GEL 50 million. The process of introduction and enforcement of COVID regulations raises increased risks of violation of fundamental human rights”… Read more… Source:idfi.ge

Tbilisi. The Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association (GYLA) considers that the election of judge members of the High Council of Justice is an internal clan rotation. “Main challenge for the justice system today is clan governance and its alliance with the Government. Observation of this process over the years shows that it is mainly carried out in a non-competitive environment and, as a rule, results in electing leaders of an influential group of judges to the Council, most of whom hold or have held managerial positions for years. Elections are associated with renewal and new perspectives, however, in this case, expectations are groundless”, - is noted in the statement. Read more… Source:gyla.ge

Samtskhe-Javakheti. Regarding to the information of Transparency International Georgia, Arali, the construction company that donates to the Georgian Dream, won tenders worth of GEL 181,923,427 GEL in 2011-2021, out of which GEL 25,816,009 (14.1% of the total amount received from tenders) won without competition, and GEL 17,447,628 (9.5%) at the expense of disqualifying its competitors. Transparency International Georgia calls upon the Anti-Corruption Agency of the State Security Service of Georgia to study the state procurements of Arali LTD and find out whether there were any alleged corruption deals between the company and the procuring entities. Read more… Source: transparency.ge

Tbilisi. On May 17, 2021, the Public Defender published Report on Positive Obligations of Law Enforcement Officers to Protect the Equality of Vulnerable Groups. “The report assesses the effectiveness of investigations of alleged hate crimes committed against Jehovah's Witnesses and members of the LGBT+ community in 2015-2020. The report also highlights the recent violations of the freedom of assembly and freedom of expression of LGBT+ persons. At the end of the document, the Public Defender offers recommendations to the law enforcement agencies relating to the measures to be taken to eliminate hate crimes and improve the realization of freedom of expression and freedom of assembly of LGBT+ people”. Read more… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. On May 13, there was conducted a working meeting, organized by the Women's Information Center and aimed to present a working draft of an alternative report on implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) as well as to reflect recommendations. “The report is prepared with the involvement of 18 non-governmental organizations and 3 networks, working in the field of gender equality and empowerment of women, and aims to provide the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women with alternative information about rights of women, as stipulated by the Convention, measures taken by the state and progress in Georgia”, - is stated on the website of the organization. Read more... Source: The website of the organization on a social network

Ozurgeti. According the information of the Institute for Development of Freedom of Information, in 2018, Article 17 of the updated Constitution of Georgia received a new amendment, according to which "everyone has the right to access the Internet and use the Internet freely". “As such, the amendment means that the state has a positive obligation to make the Internet widely available. IDFI actively advocated for this amendment to the Constitution of Georgia. Please find the overview of the implementation of the pilot project of the state program for broadband infrastructure development in Georgia”. Source: idfi.ge

Tbilisi. According to the Institute for Development of Freedom of Information (IDFI), an analysis of questions, posed in regard to the coronavirus pandemic, reveals that only a small number of MPs of the previous convocation have used the opportunity to ask a parliamentary question and thus exercise control. The organization anticipates that MPs of the new convocation will pay significant attention to the effective execution of parliamentary control and actively use all mechanisms available at their disposal, including the opportunity to pose parliamentary questions. Read more… Source: idfi.ge