Tbilisi. On June 12, 2018, a representative of the Public Defender of Georgia monitored Tbilisi City Court trials in relation to the administrative offenses allegedly committed at the 11 June rally. The detainees had to wait for the hearing of their cases all day long, as one and the same judge was considering several cases. The Public Defender considers that the abovementioned once again shows that the Code of Administrative Offenses is unconstitutional and it cannot guarantee the enjoyment of the right to a fair trial. The abovementioned problems have been pointed out in the Public Defender’s report for years. Read more… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. ''Coalition for Equality'' responds to the statement of Tea Tsulukiani, the Minister of Justice of Georgia, regarding legal recognition of a gender of transgender people. ''According to the assessment of the Coalition, mentioned statement of the Minister of Justice is extremely concerning, because it deepens stigma that exists within the society against transgender people and further encourages their marginalization'' – is noted in the statement. Read more... Source: www.gdi.ge

Tbilisi. Part of Georgian civil society organizations releases a statement regarding a rally that takes place on Rustaveli Avenue. ''We call on the organizers of the rally to take into consideration requirements of law and ensure peaceful and lawful nature of the action in order to express a fair and legitimate protest of victims and their supporters. Besides, we urge the government to adhere principles of protection the right to assembly and manifestation. In case of necessity, carry out negotiations with organizers and participants of the rally''. Read more… Source: www.osgf.ge

Tbilisi. The Public Defender Nino Lomjaria responded to blocking of a road in front of the Parliament of Georgia. "According to the legislation of Georgia, holding an assembly and demonstration shall be allowed on the road when holding an assembly and demonstration is impossible differently due to the number of demonstrators. The Government of Georgia or the self-government body shall have the right to restrict the right of a person to hold a demonstration or assembly on the road if blocking of the road is conditioned by the number of people”, - The Public Defender mentioned. In full  Source: The Public Defender’s webpage

Tbilisi. On June 12, 2018, civil society organizations, working on a monitoring of the National Strategy for the Protection of Human Rights and Action Plan of the Government on the Protection of Human Rights, will present preliminary findings of the monitoring of implementation of the Action Plan of the Government on the Protection of Human Rights for 2016-2017 to the Human Rights and Civil Integration Committee of the Parliament of Georgia within the framework of oral hearings. Read more… Source: emc.org.ge

Tbilisi. With the help of ''Transparency International Georgia'', Irakli Kikvadze, a citizen, won a court dispute against Kutaisi ''Sporting Institutions Union''. According to the verdict, the citizen must be reinstated to his position and reimbursed compensation in the amount of GEL 2000. Read more… Source: The website of the organization in a social network

Tbilisi. ''Human Rights Education and Monitoring Center'' (EMC) files a lawsuit at the Tbilisi City Court and demands compensation for moral damage inflicted by actions of the Ministry of Internal Affairs on Zviad Ratiani, in particular, via spreading his personal data. ''After publication of video recordings, he started to receive verbal insults and experience aggression against him at various times. As a result, psychological and emotional condition of Zviad Ratiani deteriorated significantly, he lost feeling of security and developed posttraumatic stress disorder'' – the statement reads. Read more… Source: The website of the organization

Tbilisi. On June 6-7, the Constitutional Court will review a lawsuit of 326 citizens related to recognition of the Law on Secret Surveillance unconstitutional. The lawsuit was filed at the Constitutional Court last June. Read more… Source: www.osgf.ge

Tbilisi. Partnership for Human Rights (PHR) publishes visualization: Prosecutor's Office does not maintain gender statistics. The organization addressed the Prosecutor's Office demanding to maintain gender statistics in accordance with the Istanbul Convention, however the agency did not satisfy the administrative complaint of PHR. Read more… Source: phrgeorgia.wordpress.com

Tbilisi. On June 5, 2018, Public Defender Nino Lomjaria met with the drivers of Tbilisi Metro who are on strike and promised them full legal aid. The Public Defender termed the court's decision to restrict the drivers’ right to strike during non-working hours for an indefinite period of time as unprecedented and comical. The Public Defender's Office will submit an amicus curiae brief in the nearest future to review the norms of national and international laws related to the right to strike. In addition, the Public Defender addresses the Tbilisi Transport Company and the Tbilisi municipality and offers them Public Defender's involvement in achieving consensus with the Tbilisi Metro drivers. Read more... Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. The Coalition for an Independent and Transparent Judiciary is responding to the failure of administrative bodies to execute the court decision ordering to reinstate Ana Subeliani and Tamaz Akhobadze in their positions at work. ''This case exemplifies the problem of institutional subordination of the LEPL National Enforcement Bureau to the Ministry of Justice. Both the National Enforcement Bureau and the Crime Prevention Center are institutionally connected to the Ministry of Justice. The Minister of Justice appoints and dismisses the Heads of both agencies. The institutional connection of the National Enforcement Bureau to the Ministry of Justice creates a risk that the enforcement of decisions that are unacceptable to the Minister of Justice may be artificially protracted or left unexecuted'', is noted in the statement. In full… Source: emc.org.ge

Tbilisi. Partnership for Human Rights publishes a blog post, according to which an abuser of a woman has been charged to compensate moral damage. ''The court took a position of PHR into consideration and, for the first time in Georgia, charged an abuser to compensate moral damage in the amount of 3500 (three thousand five hundred) lari for a fact of physical violence committed against a family member'' – is stated on the website of the organization. Read more... Source:phrgeorgia.wordpress.com

Tbilisi. Human Rights Education and Monitoring Center (EMC) publishes a documentary film: Subway under ground and above ground. ''Those employed say that structure of the subway looks like an army formation and its employees have to live with a military schedule. Today subway employees are demanding fair compensation, because their remuneration has significantly reduced due to increase of price of consumer basket and depreciation of lari'' – is stated on the website of the organization. Read more... Source:emc.org.ge

Tbilisi. Human rights organizations are closely following the mass protest in Tbilisi and other cities in recent days and declare their solidarity with Saralidze and Dadunashvili families. ''Failure of the authorities to adequately respond to the ongoing developments and thousands of people that have taken to the streets in protest are clear indication of a crisis situation in the country. The wave of public protest is not only about the problem of inadequate investigation of the Khorava Street incident, but more broadly, it is an expression of grievances that were building in society against the unfair justice system and social policy'', is noted in the statement. In full… Source: gyla.ge

Tbilisi. On May 31, 2018, Public Defender Nino Lomjaria met with schoolchildren and spoke about child's rights at the invitation of the Children and Youth National Center. "The topics of the meeting were the authority of the Public Defender and the ongoing activities in the direction of child's rights. The Public Defender noted that the most interesting and important part of the activities of the Office was communication with children, as they were best aware of their problems and the necessary measures to be taken for enabling them to live in a better environment. Such meetings always provide opportunities for sharing ideas and later implementing them in practice”, is noted in the statement. In full… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. ''Transparency International Georgia'' responds to the fact of murder that took place at the Khorava Street and demands resignation of Chief Prosecutor. ''There are years that the society has a lot of questions about biased and incomplete investigation of high-profile cases, which have led to decrease in confidence in the Prosecutor’s Office. The Prosecutor's Office has currently lost trust of the society, while the present administration does not have the ability to regain lost trust. In this situation Irakli Shotadze, Chief Prosecutor, has to assume political responsibility and resign from the position'' – is stated on the website of the organization. Read more…  Source: www.transparency.ge

Tbilisi. The thorough investigation of the murder of juveniles on Khorava Street and the execution of justice in this case represents a matter of special importance for the Public Defender. ''Due to high public interest, the Public Defender calls on the Prosecutor's Office to let her have access to all available investigation materials of the case. She also urges the Prosecutor's Office to immediately launch an investigation for identification of other persons involved in the murder and introduce the investigation materials to the Public Defender'', is noted in the statement. In full… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. The Coalition for an Independent and Transparent Judiciary is responding to the failure of administrative bodies to execute the court decision ordering to reinstate Ana Subeliani and Tamaz Akhobadze in their positions at work. This failure points to the administrative bodies’ disrespect of the right to fair trial. ''It is well known that Subeliani and Ahobadze were dismissed from the LEPL Crime Prevention Center in January 2014. They claimed that Tea Tsulukiani was responsible for this illegal and unjustified decision, although their dismissal was officially justified by reorganizational needs. The dispute went on for almost four years at three court instances, but ended with a positive outcome for Subeliani and Akhobadze. The Center was ordered to reinstate the former employees in their positions and also compensate them for the loss of remuneration from the date of dismissal until the date of reinstatement'', is noted in the statement. In full… Source: www.transparency.ge

Tbilisi. ''Human Rights Education and Monitoring Center'' (EMC) releases a video clip containing a review of a reform necessary in an investigation system. ''How are rights of both investigator and prosecutor divided during an investigation process? What reforms are needed to ensure an objective and comprehensive investigation?'' - These are questions that the video clip answers. Read more… Source:The website of the organization

Tbilisi. On 23 May 2018, the Public Defender of Georgia filed an amicus curiae brief with Tbilisi Court of Appeals relating to the case of Ltd Aiisa. The document deals with the scope of freedom of expression and the standards of its lawful restriction that can assist the court in proper consideration of the case. Read more… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. The Public Defender of Georgia is responding to the draft amendments to the Law of Georgia on Assemblies and Demonstrations prepared by the Members of the Parliament of Georgia and the accompanying changes. "According to the explanatory note of the draft law, the amendments are aimed at harmonizing the legislation with the new edition of the Constitution. The Public Defender of Georgia welcomes this process, but considers that the proposed amendments absolutely prohibit the right to peaceful assembly of a wide range of people, which worsens the constitutional standard of the protection of the right and contradicts the universally recognized international principles of human rights”, - The Public Defender mentioned. In full  Source: The Public Defender’s site

Tbilisi. Georgian Parliament hosted the presentation of the report on implementation of the right to non-discrimination in practice for various groups in Georgia. The report has been developed by Equality Coalition established with the support of the Foundation in 2014. The meeting was held under patronage of Tamar Chugoshvili, First Deputy MP. Members of legislative and executive branches of the government attended the meeting. In full  Source: http://www.osgf.ge