Tbilisi. On November 11, 2021, the Ministry of Justice/Special Penitentiary Service violated the prisoner’s right to honor, dignity and privacy by releasing the footage showing the placement of Mikheil Saakashvili in Medical Establishment No. 18 against his will. The Public Defender demands that the Minister of Justice and the Special Penitentiary Service respect the rights of prisoners and stop violating Mikheil Saakashvili's personal data, honor and dignity. Read more… Source: ombudsman.ge

On November 11, 2021, the International Day of Social Entrepreneurship, there was held a multi-actor meeting in an online format on “Enabling environment for social entrepreneurship in Georgia - current situation and perspectives”... The meeting was organized by the Civil Society Institute (CSI) in collaboration with partner organizations and Mariam Lashkhi, Deputy Chair of the Foreign Relations Committee of the Parliament of Georgia. The main purpose of the event was to establish a platform for cooperation among actors in the field in order to facilitate a supportive enabling environment for social entrepreneurship. About 50 representatives of the public, civil, and private sectors were invited to the meeting to discuss these issues. Read more…  The project - “Advancing Social Entrepreneurship for Sustainable and Inclusive Society” is implemented by the Center for Strategic Research and Development of Georgia (CSRDG) with the support of the European Union and “Bread for the World”. Partners of the project are Social Enterprise Alliance Georgia (SEA), Civil Society Institute (CSI), Georgian Civil Development Association (GCDA), Democratic Development Union of Georgia (DDUG), European Venture Philanthropy Association (EVPA), and LEPL Youth Agency.

Tbilisi. According to information released by an organization “Sapari”, the UN Women Committee has published a decision on the case of Khanum Jeiranova. Jeiranova had been accused of extramarital affairs. On September 16, 2014, she was attacked by three relatives of her husband, who dragged her across the village and beat her severely. The woman was also forced by family members to commit suicide with rat poison. The mother of Jeiranova found her dead in a shed the next day: the body was hanging on a rope. Mullahs, who served the body of the woman, noted that her clothes were saturated with blood, while according to the testimony of a witness, she had been “beaten to death”. “The UN Women’s Rights Committee concluded that Georgia failed to ensure investigation and prosecution related to gender based violence as well as to violence in the name of dignity committed against a women, who was brutally beaten by family members in front of her young children, which fact resulted in her death. In the viewpoints about the violation published today, the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) expressed its concerns over the fact that the authorities of Georgia failed to ensure detention of family members of Khanum Jeiranova, the victim, and bringing them to justice for beating her to unconsciousness, as well as in regard to the decision of returning her back to relatives, after which fact she was found dead”. The committee instructed the state to launch an independent investigation and punish perpetrators. Read more… Source: sapari.ge

Tbilisi. Signatory organizations respond to facts of detention of participants of rallies held in Tbilisi on November 10 this year and consider that the practice of mass arrests applied by law enforcement agencies violates the right to peaceful assembly and expression. Besides, it is also problematic to hold detained people in police vehicles for a long period of time, delay their transfer to detention centers, and restrict detainees to have an access to a lawyer in this process. Read more… Source: gyla.ge

Tbilisi. On November 10, the Institute for Development of Freedom of Information (IDFI) and the Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association (GYLA), with the support of the European Union, presented a study on “Best European practice of public administration and Georgia”. “The study covers policy planning and coordination, accountability, public service delivery and public finance management related directions. The purpose of the study was to examine models of successful European countries in these fields and develop recommendations based on the analysis of their public administration systems in order to facilitate effective implementation of Public Administration Reform in Georgia. Read more... Source: idfi.ge

Tbilisi. Social Justice Center presents an article that aims to overview the process of formalization of the informal economy and restrictions related to it, as well as approaches of the informal economy and challenges faced by developing countries having high indicators of the informal economy. Read more… Source: socialjustice.org.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. MAC Georgia is pleased to announce that the third round of our Mestumre program has now officially begun. “An elderly companion volunteer program, Mestumre seeks to connect older individuals living in nursing homes with volunteers. These volunteers commit to visiting their companions (online or in-person) once a week for a period of six months”. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Tbilisi. The Coalition for an Independent and Transparent Judiciary releases a statement considering that public response of several judges to the statement made by the Administrative Committee of the Conference of Judges and their dissociation from it might be an important step in restoring public confidence in the judiciary. “On November 4, the Administrative Committee of the Conference of Judges of Georgia released a special statement. In the statement, instead of addressing questions existing within society, the Administrative Committee accused civil society organizations and international actors of meddling into activities of the judiciary system emphasizing the importance of judicial independence. The problematic nature of the statement was also demonstrated by the fact that in the following days several judges publicly distanced themselves from it”. The Coalition member organizations: call on sitting and former judges to speak openly and publicly about challenges existing in the judiciary system; express their full readiness to protect the interests of judges, both nationally and internationally, in case they are subjected to direct or indirect sanctions for expressing dissenting and critical opinions. Read more… Source: socialjustice.org.ge

Tbilisi. The Public Defender of Georgia is responding to the statement made by Gigi Ugulava during a rally on November 9, 2021, which poses a threat to the child's psycho-emotional state and violates the best interest of the child- to be protected from any form of violence. The Public Defender emphasizes that it is inadmissible to use children, their personal lives and family status as tools of political debate. Read more… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. Tolerance and Diversity Institute releases a statement on the persecution of the third president. “Against this backdrop, the incarceration of the third President Mikheil Saakashvili adds to already heightened tensions, making the situation even more explosive. It is obvious to us that Mikheil Saakashvili has been subjected to politically motivated persecution, retaliation, degrading, and inhumane treatment. It stems from the open statements and decisions made by leaders of the ruling party. The Ombudsperson of Georgia also speaks about it in a critical context. Deliberate aggravation of the situation by the government and its refusal to transfer Saakashvili to a city hospital, the initiative of the Justice Ministry to conduct a trial of the third president of Georgia in the jail, appalling psychological pressure and alleged violence committed against Saakashvili, all this builds formidable barriers to any attempt to achieve a quiet political environment, destroys any opportunity to establish a dialogue between the government and the opposition and nudges the society towards civil confrontation. Such conditions pose a danger to the freedom, life, and health of every citizen in the country. It is absolutely necessary today to protect the life and health of Mikheil Saakashvili, to stop politically motivated persecution against him, and to save the country from ultimately slipping into authoritarianism and burying democracy once and for all”. Read more… Source: tdi.ge

Tbilisi. Part of civil society organizations in Georgia calls on the authorities to relocate the third President to an alternative medical facility. “We consider that full responsibility for current developments lies with the Government. Decisions taken by them in regard to the treatment of Mikheil Saakashvili are neither aimed at defusing the severe political crisis in the country nor conditioned by the health interests of the prisoner. Taking into account the current political situation, the country may be plunged into civil unrest as a result of unjustified steps taken by the Government. We call on the Government to take particular steps that are necessary to de-escalate the situation. Meanwhile, immediately relocate the third president of Georgia to an alternative medical facility, where his dignity, life, health, and safety will be ensured”. Read more… Source: transparency.ge

Tbilisi. Social Justice Center and the Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association respond to developments occurred during the relocation of Mikheil Saakashvili, the third President of Georgia, to the Gldani medical facility N18. The organizations consider that the process contradicts principles of protection of fundamental human rights to life, health and personal safety, as well as creates additional threats of both escalation of tensions and political polarization in the current political crisis. Read more… Source: socialjustice.org.ge

Are you looking for grants, stipends or trainings? Please, visit the new web page of EU NEIGHBOURS east and get familiarized with daily updated information on new opportunities for youth, women, entrepreneurs, journalists, CSOs and other groups. Share the site with your friends... Subscribe... New articles and practical information on EU-financed projects are available on the web page in 8 languages. Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Tbilisi. On November 8, 2021, the European Court of Human Rights issued an interim measure to protect the life of a child with disabilities, based on the Partnership for Human Rights (#PHR) application. “Pursuant to Rule 39 of the European Convention on Human Rights, the Court has instructed the Government of Georgia to immediately ensure the appointment of 12-hour personal assistance to ensure safety and health of the child, in accordance with existing legislation. The Court also instructed the State to increase support for L.Kh. and number of hours of personal assistance available to him, upon the change of legislation in this regard. PHR continues to provide legal assistance to L.Kh and other children, persons with disabilities and women victims of violence, with USAID/PROLoG’s support”. Read more… Source: phr.ge

Tbilisi. On November 8, 2021, Public Defender Nino Lomjaria visited third President of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili, who was transferred to Medical Establishment No. 18 of the Penitentiary Service. “At the meeting, Mikheil Saakashvili told the Public Defender that he had no information about his transfer to Establishment No. 18, as he was informed at Establishment No. 12 that he would be transferred to a multifunctional civil clinic on the basis of the decision of the medical council, which he agreed to. Speaking to the Public Defender, Mikheil Saakashvili explained that despite his refusal, he was forcibly placed in Establishment No. 18. The Public Defender's Office immediately informed the State Inspector's Office about the above for the purpose of launching an investigation. Particular attention should be paid to the environment in which Mikheil Saakashvili is placed, which grossly violates human rights. In particular, insulting and threatening shouts by prisoners of Establishment No. 18 are heard against Mikheil Saakashvili, which can be heard in Saakashvili's cell as well and clearly represents psychological pressure”. Read more… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. If you are interested in how to get registered as a volunteer at the Georgia Red Cross Society and join the coronavirus (COVID-19) response team, then visit the website for online registration, fill out required information and take an online training course on prevention of spread of the coronavirus and personal safety measures. While upon successful completion, become a member of the COVID-19 response team. Read more... Source: The website of the organization on a social network

Tbilisi. GCSD organized a simulation training on countering and preventing violent extremism. “As a result of the training, participants learned more about the role of their services in the process of preventing and countering violent extremism. The training was conducted under the program “Enhancing the Capacity of Georgia in Preventing Violent Extremism and Radicalisation”. The project is implemented by GCSD with the financial support of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs”. Read more… Source: www.gcsd.org.ge

Tbilisi. Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung publishes research: The Political Landscape of Georgia: Diversity, Convergence and Empty Spots. See findings of the research at the link...  “According to the research, the majority has strong sympathies for the West and the European Union, supports introduction of a minimum wage by law, voluntary engagement in the accumulated pension scheme, and increase of taxes for businesses that pollute the environment”.  Source: The website of the organization on a social network

Tbilisi. The Institute for Development of Freedom of Information responds to the content of statements released by the State Security Service on November 3 and 6, 2021. “These statements undermine freedom of expression and give the impression that the State Security Service aims to intimidate citizens and, thus, reduce the number of participants in rallies of the opposition”. Read more… Source: idfi.ge

Tbilisi. UN Women, in partnership with the Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia, organized a workshop. The event aimed at discussing draft internal anti-sexual harassment mechanism and identifying agency’s gender mainstreaming priorities. Within the framework of the workshop, participants discussed implementation of recommendations of the Participatory Gender Audit, conducted in the Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia in 2021, the adoption and effective implementation of the anti-sexual harassment mechanisms. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Tbilisi. On October 19, 2021, the first meeting of the Advisory Committee on Disability Issues was held at the Tbilisi Marriott Hotel. “The Advisory Committee is an entity established with the support of MAC Georgia, within the project of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) "Transforming Social Protection for Persons with Disabilities in Georgia" and will be an independent consulting channel for the project on disability-related issues. The Advisory Committee is a representative body of the community of persons with disabilities, their family members, caregivers, and their representative organizations”. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network