Tbilisi. IDFI became a Regional Hub for Central Asia and Eastern Europe in the Global Data Barometer (GDB), which is a global index study of data for the public good that builds on the foundation of the Open Data Barometer.  “Regional hubs connect GDB and each other with stakeholders around the world involved in data for public good, data for development, open data, good governance, open government, and transparency and accountability. Over the long-run, GDB aims to establish a strong network across regional hubs, and support organizations to develop as ‘Centers of Excellence’ in the collection, measurement, and use of data for public good”, is noted in the statement. Read more… Source: idfi.ge

Tbilisi. Human Rights Education and Monitoring Center (EMC) publishes an evaluation: Drug policy in pre-election visions of parties - 2020. “In general, it should be mentioned that in the pre-election context, the issue of drug policy is in fact ignored and public discussions about it take place rather in exceptional cases. While in pre-election programs and visions this topic is presented in a very fragmentary way”, - is stated on the website of the organization. Read more… Source: emc.org.ge

Tbilisi. Human Rights Education and Monitoring Center (EMC) publishes an evaluation: Justice related issues in pre-election programs of parties - 2020. “The document contains a review of visions and strategies of parties in regard to reforms to be carried out in the judiciary system, solution of problems that exist at law enforcement agencies, reformation of the State Security Service and drug policy issues. The common challenge is deficit of ideas consolidated by argumentative, realistic and specific plans on listed issues”, - is stated in the document. Read more… Source: emc.org.ge

Tbilisi. On October 21, 2020, the Public Defender of Georgia addressed the Prosecutor General of Georgia with a proposal to launch an investigation into the alleged persecution of the employees of the Public Broadcaster Adjara Television and Radio. “Examination of the circumstances of the case revealed that the employees of the Adjara TV were persecuted for their different opinions, in particular, for openly expressing critical views on the decisions made by the management”. Read more… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. On October 26, Economic Policy Research Center hosted a meeting with the Minister of Internally Displaced Persons from the Occupied Territories, Labour, Health and Social Affairs of Georgia - Ekaterine Tikaradze. The meeting discussed the new challenges facing the Georgian healthcare system as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, possible ways to solve them and the recommendations prepared by the healthcare task force. Read more… Source: The organization’s page in the social network

Tbilisi. Civil Society Organization’s Web Portal - CsoGeorgia.org, ask you to complete the questionnaire. Your feedback is important to us. We have started many innovations since 2012 and we are also planning many updates. Share your views in order to better provide you with the desired information, to better assist you in your activities. Deadline for completing the questionnaire: November 27, 2020 Questionnaire...

Tbilisi. As Transparency International Georgia informs, the CEC has extended the deadline for registration of self-isolated voters or those undergoing home treatment due to COVID-19 in the special portable box list until 14:00, October 27, which is appreciable, however, voters face a number of bureaucratic barriers, while the fact itself indicated defectiveness of the process. Read more… Source: The website of the organization in a social network

Tbilisi. Human Rights Education and Monitoring Center (EMC) publishes an analysis of rights of ethnic minorities in pre-election visions of parties. “Most of the publicly released programs, with the exception of those of European Georgia and Lelo, do not single out an issue of non-dominant ethnic groups as a separate article or paragraph. Analysis of pre-election programs of political parties makes it clear that parties are often unaware of needs, concerns, and challenges of non-dominant ethnic groups in depth. Pre-election programs often reveal conventional and superficial visions of parties on issues related to protection of rights of non-dominant ethnic groups and their participation in public, as well as political life. In this context, attempts of several parties, to apply different narratives and texts, are noteworthy. However, it should also be noted that their programs are fragmented and artificial”, - is stated on the website of the organization. Read more… Source: emc.org.ge

Tbilisi. Institute for Development of Freedom of Information publishes legal analysis: Covid-19 and Sanctions: Systemic problem of constitutionality. “The Parliament of Georgia undermines its constitutional mandate and thus puts the constitutionality of the measures of responsibility introduced for preventing the spread of Covid-19 under question”, is noted in the document.  Read more… Source: idfi.ge

Tbilisi. Transparency International Georgia publishes a report: Brief analysis of the draft state budget of Georgia for 2020 and recommendations.  •On the background of aggravation of the pandemic, the ongoing war in the region and reduced foreign investments, it is more feasible if the government plans the budget for a lower rate of economic growth; •In the part of expenditures of the budget, non-allocation of funds necessary for reduction of harm caused by the “Coronavirus” makes the budget unrealistic. The government must ensure that the budget covers increased medical expenses, as well as costs of quarantine and other relevant measures; •Insufficient funds are allocated for the Universal Health Care Program. The ministry must increase the amount of funds allocated for 2021 significantly, otherwise it will have to limit financing of medical services”, - is stated on the website of the organization. Read more… Source: transparency.ge

Tbilisi. On October 26, International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy (ISFED) presented the II interim report on pre-election monitoring of social media in the context of the 2020 elections of the Parliament of Georgia. “Sites that promote public polarization on issues related to values are actively involved in the pre-election campaign in favor of political actors having pro-Russian disposition. 69 sites, manipulating values related topics, lead agitation in favor of the following election subjects: “Alliance of Patriots”, “Georgian March”, “Georgian Idea”, Dimitri Lortkipanidze, Director of the Primakov Foundation, a majoritarian candidate from Didube-Chugureti district, and Zviad Tomaradze, a majoritarian candidate from Gldani district. They also spread anti-liberal, anti-Western, xenophobic or homophobic sentiments. The same applies to pro-Russian narratives. Political discrediting campaigns carried out on unofficial, anonymous and fake media sites of Facebook have also been continued intensively”, - is stated on the website of the organization. Read more… Source: isfed.ge

Tbilisi. Human Rights Education and Monitoring Center (EMC) publishes a blog post: Conflict regions and human rights in pre-election visions of political parties - 2020. “The issue of restoring territorial integrity and resolving the conflict has not been left out of pre-election campaigns of political parties, however, they are unable to offer us: Essentially new, transformational approaches that give birth to gradual and realistic visions of conflict resolution. Parties still find it difficult to offer groundbreaking initiatives for resolving the conflict. They have not properly realized reasons for success or failure of such mechanisms in previous years, constantly changing political contexts and attitudes within the occupied territories. They fail to offer us mechanisms, which they are intending to apply to protect human rights at the occupied territories, neither they have a vision for introduction of respective international mechanisms”, - is stated in the document. Read more… Source: emc.org.ge

Tbilisi. Transparency International Georgia (TI Georgia) publishes a blog post: Misuse of administrative resources during the 2020 elections of the Parliament of Georgia - Interim report. Along with its conclusions the organization provides the following recommendations: “It is essential to have election commissions perceive election campaigning through social networks as a violation of law and make appropriate decisions; The government should refrain from initiating large-scale social programs shortly before the elections in order not to harm healthy competition between electoral subjects”, - is stated on the website of the organization. Read more… Source: transparency.ge

Adjara. During the #COVID19 outbreak the volunteers of the #GRCS Batumi branch continue to distribute parcels of basic necessities to the vulnerable community in Batumi: The socially vulnerable, single older people aged 70 and over; The older people, who live only with persons with the special needs (people with disabilities); The retirees, who live alone and need home care assistance; The retirees, who are socially vulnerable and have special needs (people with disabilities). Read more… Source: The organization’s page in the social network

Tbilisi. Human Rights Education and Monitoring Center (EMC) publishes a document, which contains an analysis of the policy of platforms and visions of political parties in terms of equality. “More precisely, the document contains a detailed review and analysis of discourses, visions and strategies presented by parties in their election platforms in regard to protection of rights and meeting needs of non-dominant religious and ethnic groups, as well as protection of rights of women and LGBTQ people and human rights in conflict regions. In general, it seems that equality policy is not a priority for a large part of political parties, and most of them use superficial as well as mainstream paradigms and visions”, - is stated on the website of the organization. Read more… Source: emc.org.ge

Tbilisi. On October 23, International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy (ISFED), Georgian Democracy Initiative (GDI) and the Human Rights Center (HRC) conducted a presentation of a study – “Democracy and human rights in the conditions of pandemic and state of emergency”. “A group of researchers, invited by GDI and ISFED, spent four months studying both the legal framework, as well as international standards, and measures taken by the Government of Georgia in regard to the new coronavirus (COVID-19). HRC provides legal assistance to people affected by measures taken by the Government of Georgia. The project is implemented with the financial support of the Open Society Georgia Foundation. The purpose of the study was to work out critical analysis of the legal framework and develop relevant recommendations in regard to the existing shortcomings, on the one hand, while on the other hand, to evaluate constitutionality of regulations adopted by the Government of Georgia within 2020”, - is noted in the statement. Read more… Source:gdi.ge

Tbilisi. Transparency International Georgia publishes a report: State of the judiciary 2016-2020. “Present report contains a review of significant developments and legislative changes that have taken place in the judiciary system over the last four years, which provides an opportunity to both make their systemic analysis and evaluate situation existing within the judiciary. It may be noted that implemented reforms did not address those fundamental issues, which would ultimately ensure establishment of the independent judiciary system. The government has failed to demonstrate the political will to carry out a full and fundamental reform of the judiciary. Respectively, the judiciary system is still not freed from unhealthy influences”, - is stated on the website of the organization. Read more… Source: transparency.ge

Tbilisi. The two-day preliminary hearing on the physical and psychological violence committed by the accused Nikoloz Basilashvili against his ex-wife Neli Dorokashvili in the presence of a minor ended yesterday. The judge explained that the evidence presented by the prosecutor's office provides a high degree of probability for the presumption that a guilty verdict would be handed down against Nikoloz Basilashvili on all five episodes. Due to the high public interest in this case, we provide the information about the ongoing processes. Read more… Source: phr.ge

Tbilisi. The Economic Policy Research Center (EPRC) publishes an article about “Strategic vision for developing the healthcare system - Reconciled provisions”. “This is the first time when there are developed compromised, reconciled documents, related to the healthcare system, and signed by people from different political parties as well as with different political views”. Read more… Source: The website of the organization in a social network

Tbilisi. Transparency International Georgia publishes its comments on a resolution passed by the Central Election Commission to regulate an issue of participation of “coronavirus”-infected inpatient and isolated voters in the elections, however, the organization considers that the resolution contains a number of shortcomings. “1) Inclusion of people, who are in self-isolation or undergoing treatment at home, into the mobile ballot box list only if they apply to the CEC from October 24 through October 26 is unjustifiable, because such voters will not be able to vote if they do not manage to apply in time. 2) Voting will be carried out only through a portable ballot box. We consider that it would be better to set up special polling stations in those inpatient and quarantine facilities, which count more than 30 voters, thus allowing to make the voting process more transparent and better monitored”. Read more… Source: transparency.ge

Tbilisi. Transparency International Georgia appraises the state of the media in Georgia prior to the elections, as a rule. “In this case, there has been carried out an appraisal of the period from the 2016 parliamentary elections to the present (to the 2020 parliamentary elections), which makes it clear that approaches of “Georgian Dream” towards the critical media have become stricter than those in the previous reporting period”, - is stated on the website of the organization. Read more… Source: transparency.ge

Tbilisi. On October 22, International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy (ISFED) presented the fifth interim report on pre-election monitoring of the October 31, 2020 elections of the Parliament of Georgia. “According to the appraisal of the organization, main challenges to the electoral environment remain to be facts of pressure / threatening / obstruction committed against voters, activists and opposition politicians”. Read more… Source: isfed.ge