Tbilisi. The Public Defender has published a special report – “Compliance of social and health care programs of self-governing bodies with the principle of equality”, which contains an analysis of compliance of municipal programs with anti-discrimination legislation. “The study found that some programs of local self-governments apply discriminatory criteria in terms of gender, disability, age, marital status and other grounds while determining target beneficiary groups, as a result of which a number of groups are left out of the program. Besides, there are used terms and regulations, which encourage discrimination against different groups and reinforce existing stigmas. In some cases, selection for participation in the program from people with similar needs is done without any justification”. Read more… Source:ombudsman.ge

The web portal CsoGeorgia.org releases a weekly newsletter of grants competition, contests, vacancies, fellowships, and tenders for civil society organizations, and for any interested person. Newsletter...

E-cards cover a variety of important issues about vaccination in the time of COVID-19. The cards were developed in the framework of the EU Neighborhood Policy in cooperation with the World Health Organization and EUvsDisinfo All you need to know about vaccination in the time of COVID-19

Tbilisi. On 25th of May Business and Technology University (BTU) will host a virtual employment forum – FEMTECH. “Forum aims to provide employment opportunities to women and girls, who have graduated BTU Coding School. In this way the University tries to support the graduates with employment opportunities in ICT sector. BTU is one of the signatories of the Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs) and has already launched a number of interesting initiatives to empower women and girls”. Read more… To register for the forum, please visit the following link… Source: UN Women Georgia’s page on the social network

Tbilisi. Social Justice Center (formerly EMC) critically appraises the bill on Amnesty that is drafted by the “Georgian Dream” about June 19-21 developments. The bill provides a blanket exemption from criminal liability for a wide range of crimes related to June 19-21 developments, as well as excludes victims from the process completely.  In the opinion of the organization: “The bill on Amnesty should be based on a broad public and political consensus;  The amnesty should be clear and precise in its content and more emphasis, in the process, should be placed on the involvement of victims and their interests; In order to reduce polarization in the country and shift political processes to a constructive, institutional mode, the government must show real political will for fundamental electoral and judicial reforms, as well as for distribution of political power”. Read more… Source: socialjustice.org.ge

Samegrelo. Transparency International Georgia won 29 cases in 2020 within the framework of free legal assistance. This time, Ineza Kvitatiani, a citizen, registered a 3,504 square-meter plot of land in the Ingiri village of Zugdidi with the support of lawyers of the organization. Read more… Source: The website of the organization on a social network

Tbilisi. Public Defender releases the statement on violence against the Mtavari TV’s journalists. “According to the reports spread on May 4, 2021, during the preparation of a TV story on the territory of the Davit-Gareji monastery complex, journalists of the Mtavari TV company were abused by the clergy and other persons. According to the journalists, their equipment was also damaged. The Public Defender’s Office condemns all forms of violence against representative of the media and emphasizes the vital role of a free and critical media environment for a democratic society, as well as its special role in promoting the respect for the rule of law and human rights in the country". Read more… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. On April 22, 2021, the European Court satisfied a complaint of the Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association (GYLA) in the case of “Kalandia v. Georgia” and found a violation of Article 6 (1) (the right to a fair trial) of the European Convention. “The case of Kalandia is one of the cases within current legal proceedings of GYLA, which deal with persecution of people on the ground of political motivation, and, in its essence, is similar to the two cases won by GYLA in the European Court – “Tlashadze and Kakashvili v. Georgia” and “Megrelishvili v. Georgia”. Read more… Source: gyla.ge

Tbilisi. Last week, the Rondeli Foundation and OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities successfully completed the second part of the training course "Enhancing National Minority Agenda". “Within the framework of the program cohort of national minorities of Georgia gained theoretical and practical knowledge on policy analysis, advocacy and lobbying, women's participation, research methods, and disinformation. Participants also met with the Ministry of Education and Science of Georgia representatives, the Office of the Ombudsman, the Central Election Commission, and the OSCE HCNM”. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Tbilisi. International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy (ISFED) publishes a report: “Propaganda narratives on Facebook during the 2020 parliamentary elections”... “The report contains a review of an activity revealed on the basis of a study of Facebook sites spreading propaganda narratives on issues related to values and outlines both quantitative and qualitative findings. The report also includes a review of coordination of sites with election subjects, as well as an analysis of messages of sites disseminating propaganda narratives in line with political discourse and electoral processes”. Read more… Source: isfed.ge

Tbilisi. Visit the link to get familiarized with the Final Report on Social Media Monitoring for the 2020 Parliamentary Elections prepared by the International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy (ISFED). “The report contains an analysis of main trends that took place in the social media space in Georgia from September 1 through November 21, 2020. In particular, it provides description of activities of official sites of political parties and candidates, registered in the elections, those of official sites of local self-government bodies, as well as results of observation on unofficial, anonymous sites, operating with political purposes, and other important trends aimed at influencing the will of voters in one way or another. Read more... Source: www.isfed.ge

Tbilisi. Fair Labor Platform releases a statement in regard to International Workers’ Day. "In Georgia, one part of workers meets May 1 jobless, while another part is in dangerous working conditions. The multifaceted and pervasive crisis, occurred as a result of the COVID 19 pandemic, is a proof that the current political and economic system fails to provide a sustainable, fair and secure daily life for workers and their families. The crisis confirms that there is also necessity of fundamental changes and fight for them”, - is noted in the joint statement.  Read more… Source: socialjustice.org.ge

Tbilisi. Social Justice Center (formerly EMC) responds to a package of intended changes in legislation on construction initiated at the Parliament of Georgia.  The organization considers that it creates direct risks of criminalization of homelessness and is unequivocally contrary to international standards of human rights.  Read more… Source: socialjustice.org.ge

Tbilisi. According to information released by Transparency International Georgia, there is a bill initiated in the Parliament, which envisages tightening measures of liability for petty hooliganism, as well as disobedience to a lawful demand of the police. “On the background of the ongoing political and social crisis in the country, while public protests are growing and the economic situation in the country is extremely dire, these changes will place a heavy burden on the population and can be considered as a step towards restricting civil space. We call on the Parliament of Georgia not to support this initiative and, taking into account the difficult economic background, not to increase the number of fines”, - is noted in the statement. Read more… Source: transparency.ge

Tbilisi. Social Justice Center (formerly EMC) prepared a report on drug policy trends for 2020. “The report contains a review of a current drug crimes related situation in the field of justice, 2020 statistics on the criminal prosecution of drug crimes and convictions, drug testing, the number of probationers and other relevant issues”, - is stated on the website of the organization. Read more… Source: socialjustice.org.ge

Tbilisi. According to the ruling of the judge Diana Pharkosadze dated 27 April 2021, Rights Georgia’s claim was fully upheld and the court assigned Migration Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs to grant humanitarian status to Somalian citizen A.M.A. in Georgia. The applicant was represented by Rights Georgia’s lawyer Rusudan Mchedlishvili. Read more... Source: rights.ge

The web portal CsoGeorgia.org releases a weekly newsletter of grants competition, contests, vacancies, fellowships, and tenders for civil society organizations, and for any interested person. Newsletter...

Tbilisi. Social Justice Center presents an article by Mariam Devidze – “Visible or invisible: Climate change and work of rural women”. “Climate change is a global problem that confronts all countries around the world with a lot of challenges. According to a statement made by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the consequences of climate change hamper the implementation of agricultural activities and water supply, which has an impact on such issues as food safety, availability, and retention of prices. It should be noted that the main contributors to climate change are rich countries and populations, while its detrimental consequences affect mostly poor countries (including Georgia) and marginalized as well as vulnerable groups of the population, and there are also women among them. As a result, social and global inequality is furthermore exacerbated”, - is stated in the article. Read more… Source: socialjustice.org.ge

Imereti. According to information released by the Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association (GYLA), on April 28, the Tskaltubo Magistrate Court announced an operative part of the decision, according to which “Enka Renewables LLC”, a construction company that builds the Cascade of Namokhvani HPPs, was found guilty under Part 1 of Article 798 of the Code of Administrative Offenses that implies non-compliance of an implementer of activities with terms stipulated by the environmental decision. The court imposed a fine of GEL 5000 on the company as an administrative charge. Read more… Source: gyla.ge

Tbilisi. According to the opinion of the Social Justice Center (formerly EMC), the Code of Administrative Offenses becomes even more repressive with intended changes. “The changes completely disregard the necessity of a reform of the Code of Administrative Offenses demanded by civil society organizations and human rights defenders over the years, while instead they provide even more room for arbitrary use of police repressive mechanisms and charges. We call on the Parliament not to support the initiated changes and, in return, to start working on a fundamental reform of the Code of Administrative Offences in a timely manner”, - is stated on the website of the organization. Read more… Source: socialjustice.org.ge

Tbilisi. With the support of UN Women, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia organized an information sharing meeting with the CSOs on „Geneva International Discussions and the Women, Peace and Security Agenda“. “At the meeting, the representatives of the women’s CSOs raised issues related to IDP and conflict-affected women and offered specific views and initiatives to Georgian participants of Geneva International Discussions on ways to promote inclusive peace process in the country”. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Tbilisi. On May 19, Georgia’s Responsible Business Awards Meliora 2020 will be conducted in an online format. This year the Contest is intended to take place in a special format and companies will be awarded for those projects and initiatives, which they have implemented to fight against the COVID pandemic within the framework of their corporate social responsibility (CSR). “At the award ceremony, companies will be awarded for projects they have implemented to overcome the crisis caused by the pandemic, while categories are going to be as follows: supporting employees, supporting clients, customers, and suppliers, supporting society and local communities, as well as supporting SMEs and most suffered industries. Georgia’s Responsible Business Awards Meliora 2020 is sponsored by Moore ABC. Meliora 2020 is implemented within the framework of the project “Civil Society Initiative: Sustainable, Open and Accountable Civil Society Organizations for Development of Georgia” funded by the European Union and the Konrad Adenauer Foundation (KAS)”, Georgia’s Responsible Business Awards. Read more… Source: meliora.ge