Tbilisi. Social Justice Center publishes the survey “Environmental Impact Assessment - Safeguarding Development in Georgia?.” “It is true that even a perfect legislation does not guarantee decisions that fully protect social and environmental interests when economic activities are being planned, however, if there are any shortcomings in the legislation that create a risk of making unscrupulous or incompetent decisions, then the risk of neglecting public interests is higher. Thus, the purpose of this study is to identify specific shortcomings in the Environmental Assessment Code and to recommend relevant legislative changes. This study does not have an ambition of fully analyzing the compliance of Georgia’s Environmental Assessment Code with the EU EIA Directive and the Aarhus Convention, nor does it claim to be fully analyzing the shortcomings in the Code”. Read more… Source: socialjustice.org.ge

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Tbilisi. The Public Defender of Georgia echoes the Pride Week that is due to start on June 28 and emphasizes the importance of ensuring the conduct of events within the framework of the Week in a peaceful and non-violent environment for the proper realization of the rights of the LGBT+ community and their supporters, as well as for the smooth conduct of democratic processes in the country. The Public Defender calls on the Minister of Internal Affairs of Georgia to: •    take timely and effective measures in order to prevent possible violent actions and protect the participants and organizers of the Tbilisi Pride from any threats coming from the violent groups; •    ensure that all the events scheduled within the framework of the Pride Week are carried out safely and smoothly; take measures to protect the territory adjacent to the Tbilisi Pride office; •    carry out the investigation launched on June 6, 2022 into the alleged threats and violent calls relating to the Tbilisi Pride Week in an effective manner; •    promptly respond to any violations. Read more… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. With UN Women’s technical support, Civil Service Bureau (CSB) adopted its first-ever internal Gender Equality Strategy and Action Plan (AP) on 6 June 2022… CSB’s Gender Equality Strategy and AP aim to strengthen gender responsive public employment systems to enable women’s full and effective participation and leadership in public service. The documents are aligned with recommendations of the participatory gender audit (PGA) conducted by CSB with UN Women’s support in 2020. The initiative is carried out within the framework of the “Good Governance for Gender Equality in Georgia” (GG4GEG) project generously funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Norway. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Tbilisi. The Coalition for Independent and Transparent Judiciary considers the appointment of Mikheil Chinchaladze for a second term as the chairman of the Tbilisi Court of Appeals unjustified and harmful. “The High Council of Justice’s decision further deepens the problem of internal influences and clan-based governance in the judiciary. It undermines public trust towards judicial independence and damages the crucial process of Georgia's European integration”, is noted in the statement. Read more… Source: socialjustice.org.ge

Tbilisi. A large-scale rally was held in Tbilisi on June 24 in response to the failure of the Georgian Government to secure the EU candidate status. The European Union deferred giving Georgia its official EU candidate status until after the implementation of conditions set out in the 12-point Action Plan. The EU will assess Georgia's implementation of recommendations and conditions by the end of 2022. “We do not believe that the Government, which has a history of backtracking on promises made to international partners, will carry out the necessary reforms. On June 24, the people’s movement “Home to Europe” made the following demands: The resignation of the Georgian government led by Irakli Gharibashvili, who spared no effort to prevent Georgia from gaining EU candidate status in the run up to the final decision of the European Council by verbally attacking European diplomats and the country’s supporters, fueling internal political polarization and damaging the country's international image. We demanded Bidzina Ivanishvili to relinquish and transfer his executive power within Constitutional boundaries to the “Government of National Consent – For the EU”. This transitional government will be responsible for the implementation of the 12 priorities required by the EU for receiving the candidate status”. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Regions. From May 24 to June 13, 2022, the Public Defender’s Office held meetings with schoolchildren living in different regions of Georgia. The aim of the project was to raise children’s awareness of their rights and the mandate of the Public Defender, as well as to provide information about their rights in their relations with the police. Read more… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. The Public Defender of Georgia welcomes changes to the Decree of the Government of Georgia on Social Package, as a result of which persons with disabilities will no longer be restricted from receiving a social package during the implementation of public activities. Read more… Source: www.ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. HRHT responds to the yesterday's statement of "Tbilisi Pride" and fully joins to the organization's demands to the government. “This year, “Tbilisi Pride” refuses to hold a “March of Dignity” within the Pride Week in order to avoid tensions and polarization in the process of European integration. The Georgian queer community and their supporters are refusing to exercise their constitutional right to assemble, because the mobilization of aggressive, homophobic groups poses a potential threat to them again, as it did last year. This year’s Pride Week consists of closed events. Nonetheless, violent, pro-Russian groups continue to openly declare that they will obstruct the festival organizers and disrupt their events. It is critically important for the state to show political will, arrest both last year and this year’s organizers of the violence, and protect the festival. It is disturbing that peaceful groups have been forced to relinquish their rights to avoid confrontation, while violent groups continue their threats with open, aggressive texts. A special problem is still the discrediting calls of high-ranking government officials towards the organizers, activists and supporters of "Tbilisi Pride". The government is obliged to protect activists and human rights defenders. One of the important components of this protection is the public support of these groups. It is essential that high-ranking government officials condemn all crimes against human rights defenders and activists and, through their public calls, promote human rights activities, and in particular the protection of minority rights”. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Tbilisi. Over 30 young climate activists, aged 13 to 16 years, learn about climate change, networking and leadership in the Green Camp #ClimateAmbassadors. The Green Camp is organized by UNDP Georgia and the Environmental Information and Education Centre of Georgia’s Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture. It’s part of a nationwide climate programme supported by the Green Climate Fund and the governments of Georgia, Sweden and Switzerland. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Kakheti. Caritas Georgia Health Care Program continues to support the family members of the beneficiaries of the home care project. On June 1-3 2022, the relatives of the beneficiaries together with a psychologist and a social worker of Caritas Georgia Health Care program traveled to Ikalto, Kakheti region. Caritas Georgia Health Care Program offers the family members and the relatives of the Home Care program beneficiaries environment for recreation. During their stay in Ikalto, informational meetings on the Behavior Management and Social and Health Care Programs as well as the programs and activities conducted by CG Health Care program were held for the family members of the beneficiaries. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Tbilisi. Tolerance and Diversity Institute (TDI) publishes a statement. “Today Georgia is at a critical crossroads where the choice is only between freedom and authoritarianism. In this historical moment of Eurointegration for our country, the government of Georgia betrayed the firm will of the Georgian people, the Constitution, and the idea of freedom. By oligarchic rule and authoritarian inclinations, ruining democratic institutions and values, ignoring human rights, persecuting opposition, media and civil society, violence against minorities, abolishing justice, the endless propaganda of hatred and constant obstruction against the Western allies - the Government distanced Georgia from its European identity and pulled closer to Russia. Protection of the human and the country’s dignity, promotion of freedom and equality, and contribution to building a state based on these values have always been TDI’s aim. We think that now it is the primary obligation of each citizen, politician, media, public servant and any freedom-loving human to persistently protect the constitutional will of the Georgian people, to protect the European and democratic Georgia and not to allow our return in the Russian sphere of influence”. Read more… Source: tdi.ge

Imereti. You can already see the video about a Regional Civil Society Forum organized by Imereti Regional HUB – Local Democracy Agency Georgia (LDA Georgia) and Education Development and Employment Center (EDEC) in Akaki Tsereteli State University  in Kutaisi.  The main purpose of the forum was to promote a culture of volunteerism, to attract potential donors and to strengthen civil society in the Imereti region. The forum was organised within the framework of the project "Civil Society STAR Initiative: CSO's as Sustainable, Transparent, and Accountable and Resilient Development Actors in Georgia", supported by the European Union (EU) and the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS). Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Tbilisi. USAID/Georgia Mission Director, Peter Wiebler, handed certificates and Biblus vouchers to the three winner students/teams of a nationwide competition organized as part of the USAID Civic Education Raising Awareness Campaign “Learn To Make A Difference”. “The competition invited young people to develop ideas for how to make civic education more interesting and fun for all, both teachers and students. Winning ideas included approaches to student self-governance, media literacy, and choosing a career. Here are the winners: Lizi Dugladze (Rustavi public school #13); Mariam Natsvlishvili (Kutaisi school “Progress”,); Nia Tavdishvili, Ekaterine Sandukhadze, and Nikoloz Iremadze (Tbilisi public school #221.)”. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Tbilisi. Coalition for an Independent and Transparent Judiciary considers, that judicial reform is necessary to obtain EU candidate status. “According to the European Commission’s Opinions, based on which the European Council will make final decisions, Ukraine should fulfill seven conditions, Moldova ten conditions, and Georgia twelve conditions. Judicial reform is one of the main priorities among the conditions imposed on Georgia. We believe that the Venice Commission’s Opinion, critical statements made by local and international actors, and the conditions outlined in the European Commission’s opinion, indicate the need for fundamental justice sector reforms. Such changes are critical considering the ongoing highly important processes associated with European integration, because the justice sector reforms are a key prerequisite for the success of these processes. Considering all the above, we call on the Parliament of Georgia: To acknowledge the dire state of the court system and express a firm political will to comply with the European Commission’s requirements; To promptly amend the legislative framework deteriorated because of the changes of December 30, 2021; To implement all justice system-related legislative processes with the broad involvement of the public and judges, and in close cooperation with the Venice Commission”. Read more… Source: transparency.ge

Tbilisi. According to the information of the TI Georgia, during his parliamentary address on June 22, Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili spoke that Georgia is amongst champions in the fight against corruption. “The government of Georgia repeatedly misinterprets international rankings to conceal real problems in the country. This time the Prime Minister utilized the Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index (CPI) 2021. He stated that according to the CPI, Georgia ranked 51st in 2012 and 45th in 2021, disregarding that the score obtained by a country is more important than the rank. Georgia’s score has not improved significantly since 2012 when the country had 52 points out of 100; Nine years later, in 2021 Georgia had a score of 55, indicating the stagnation of anti-corruption reforms in the country. 55 points is an average result. For example, the scores of the top 10 performing countries exceed 80. He stated that Georgia is the unconditional leader in the Associated Trio, compared to Ukraine and Moldova. According to the CPI, Georgia does have a better result, which is largely due to the low level of petty bribery. However, successful anti-bribery reforms were carried out 18 years ago and cannot be recognized as the current government’s achievement. What the CPI scores actually indicate is that similar ambitious reforms have not been implemented in the last 9 years. Moreover, the CPI uses the term "state capture" only with reference to Georgia and not Moldova or Ukraine, which the Prime Minister also did not mention”. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

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Kakheti. On June 17, 2022, the Public Defender’s monitoring group[1] monitored the Tsnori Nursing Home for Older People NNLE, located in the Sighnaghi district of Kakheti. The monitoring showed that the situation in the facility is alarming and the elderly are in degrading conditions. “The monitoring conducted by the Public Defender's Office revealed that the beneficiaries are in severe unsanitary conditions. There is an unbearable smell all over the building. No attention is paid to the hygiene of the beneficiaries. Most of them wear old, torn and dirty clothes. The facility does not provide personal hygiene items or support in observing personal hygiene. The interview with beneficiaries made it clear that they do not have the opportunity to take a shower. According to one of them, she has not taken a shower at all this year”… With regard to inappropriate conditions in the Tsnori Nursing Home, the Public Defender of Georgia appealed to the Minister of Labour, Health and Social Affairs of Georgia and the Agency for State Care and Assistance for Victims of Trafficking to react to the above-mentioned violations urgently and to transfer the beneficiaries to other facilities immediately, where they will have decent conditions. Read more… Source: ombudsman.ge

Adjara. NGOs are responding to the changes in the Spatial Planning, Architectural and Construction Code of Georgia, initiated in the parliament by the Batumi Municipality. “We believe that the package of legislative changes contains the danger of further aggravation of the problem of chaotic development of the city of Batumi, creates risks of unjustified, potentially corrupt decisions by the Batumi City Hall, and avoidance of construction regulations by construction companies as a result of special privileges granted to them”. Read more… Source: socialjustice.org.ge

Tbilisi. GCSD signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Institute for Development and Diplomacy. The Memorandum aims to implement academic programs, joint training courses, research projects as well as to exchange experts for participation in different academic events in each other’s countries. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Tbilisi. Georgian Foundation for Strategic and International Studies publishes Kakha Gogolashvili’s blogpost: In line for the candidate status, Georgia will get a European perspective. What are we worried about.? “It is necessary for our government to immediately recognize the conditions presented by the European Commission, and express its full readiness to meet them. If the government does not agree with them, any discussion about it makes no sense. There have been no occasions for the European Commission to negotiate easing of the conditions. Therefore, if the current administration does not agree and refuses to meet the conditions set, it must relinquish its authority due to the constitutional obligation of the country for European integration. A new administration must then be appointed to fulfill the conditions. This is a minimalist scenario that does not involve new elections and a change of government. The change, if it became necessary, must be implemented very quickly, and the new administration must start working on fulfilling the conditions of the European Commission immediately and effectively”. Read more… Source: gfsis.org.ge