Tbilisi. Vakhushti Menabde, GYLA Democratic Institutions Support Program Director, Ilia State University Associate Professor, publishes his response to the ruling party. “The Georgian Dream analyzed interim reports on the 2021 self-government elections prepared by observer organizations, including GYLA. Findings of the analysis were presented to the public on Friday. We always review comments made in regard to our documents attentively, which allows us to improve them. We do not think that criticism is a one-way street and no one can respond to us or point out mistakes. On the contrary, we are always ready to listen. Therefore, I have read this analysis with great care. And now I would like to discuss it with you. Needless to say, I do not intend to speak on behalf of other observer organizations, so I will focus only on the report of GYLA”, - writes the author. Read more… Source: The website of the organization

Tbilisi. The Public defender of Georgia published a report – ‘Impact of COVID 19 pandemic on conflict-affected women and girls.   ‘The present report provides results of research conducted by the Public Defender’s Office of Georgia. The purpose of the study was to investigate the effects of the coronavirus pandemic on conflict-affected women and girls, to evaluate local safety policy in this regard, and to identify the needs of women and girls living in collective centers, near the dividing line and in the occupied territories , - we rad in the information spread by the Public Defender’s office, - ‘As part of the monitoring, interviews and focus groups meetings were held with the conflict-affected women and girls, representatives of international organizations and, international missions; also with the non-governmental organizations, working on the peacebuilding process.  Read more… https://www.ombudsman.ge/eng/akhali-ambebi/covid-19-pandemiis-gavlena-konfliktit-dazaralebul-kalebsa-da-gogoebze  Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. The Public defender of Georgia published a report - ‘Findings and Recommendations of Monitoring of Implementation of 2018-2020 National Action Plan for Women, Peace, and Security.   ‘The present report provides results of the Public Defender’s monitoring of the implementation of the 2018-2020 National Action Plan for Women, Peace, and Security. The purpose of the monitoring was to evaluate the implementation of the measures provided for in the Action Plan and the results achieved to identify shortcomings and main gaps’, - we rad in the information spread by the Public Defender’s office, - ‘As part of the monitoring, information was requested from state agencies implementing the activities under the Action Plan. Focus group meetings were held with women living in the IDP settlements and villages along the dividing line in various regions of Georgia. Meetings were also held with representatives of non-governmental organizations and self-governing bodies. Due to the limitations of the Covid Pandemic, the above-mentioned meetings were held online’.  Read more…  Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. Religious Associations of Public Defender’s Council of Religions and Tolerance Center Express Protest against Released Secret Materials. ‘We are astonished and express our extreme protest against the released secret materials and information contained in them’, - It is said in their statement, - ‘Members of the Council of Religions are considering what legal and international mechanisms we can apply to protect our rights and freedoms, our security. At the same time, we urge everyone: the Georgian Government, opposition parties, human rights organizations, religious associations, the media, and private individuals to exercise extreme caution relating to secret information, as it may inflict the most serious, completely undeserved, and irreparable harm on the security and reputation of each person, including minors, which is particularly alarming’. Read more…  Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. The Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association appeals to the Constitutional Court and demands to recognize boundaries of majoritarian constituencies established for local self-government elections unconstitutional. “By its decision N1/3/547 of May 28, 2015, the Constitutional Court of Georgia considered unconstitutional those norms of the Electoral Code, which defined boundaries of constituencies for the parliamentary elections in a way that violated the principle of an equal weight of electoral votes of voters. According to the common practice of the Constitutional Court of Georgia, “the primary goal and basis for the exercise of the right to vote are to reflect the will of citizens in final results of elections”. Respectively, an important component of this right is the ability of voters to affect the outcome of elections. Following the disputed norms, loss of weight and influence of electoral vote deprives voters of the opportunity to exercise his/her active suffrage effectively. In contrary to this, voters, the weight of whose electoral vote is raised, obtain an increased chance to affect the results of elections. Such an electoral system grants citizens unequal opportunities as well as fails to ensure that elections are held in accordance with the Constitution and the will of voters is adequately reflected in the final results of elections, which contradicts the principle of democratic governance. The decision of the Constitutional Court was about the right to equality of votes in the parliamentary elections, however, international experience confirms that the same approach is relevant for local self-government elections as well”, - they state at GYLA. Read more… Source: The website of the organization

Tbilisi. IDFI publishes the article "Archives and Conspiracy Theories: An Example of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church" by Mochil Metodiev, a Researcher of the Institute for Studies of the Recent Past, Bulgaria.  ‘Understandably, the expectations from the opening of the communist secret services archives are high. The society hopes that the archives will provide long-awaited answers on the communist regime and its collapse and that this step will lead to greater transparency of institutions, it will restore justice, and pave the way for meritocratic development of the new elites. All those hopes are understandable and reasonable. At the same time, the opening of the archives brings a number of unforeseen challenges. The main challenge is the possible discrepancy between the information, revealed in the archives, and the public convictions, already established during the early years of the transition. How do the public and institutions react when the revelations from the archives not only do not confirm but even contradict the already established perceptions?’ - We read in the article.  Read more…   Source: The webpage of the organization

Tbilisi. Transparency International Georgia has launched a live blog on election irregularities and response. The data covers the period from June 1 to September 17. Read more…  Source: The webpage of the organization

Tbilisi. They believe at the International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy that the CEC should reconsider the issue of registration of representatives of the Belarusian CEC as election observers. “We, the International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy (ISFED) and the European Platform for Democratic Elections (EPDE), are concerned about the decision of the Central Election Commission of Georgia, which envisages registration of Galina Mkrtchyan and Olesya Urbanovich, representatives of the Central Election Commission of the Republic of Belarus, as international observers for the upcoming local elections in Georgia. We call on the election administration of Georgia to reconsider the issue of accreditation of Ms. Mkrtchyan and Ms. Urbanovich as observers taking into account the fact that they are representatives of the uncompromisingly repressive regime in Belarus who were directly involved in the mass falsification of election results during the recent presidential elections in Belarus”, - is noted in the statement released by the organization. Read more… Source: The website of the organization

Tbilisi. The Institute for Development of Freedom of Information (IDFI) responds to the documentary material posted on the Internet space and sent it to the media on September 13. The material is allegedly created by the State Security Service via processing of information obtained as a result of covert surveillance among other means. “The Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia should immediately inform society whether the spread materials are authentic or not. At the same time, the Parliament should apply authorities granted to it by the Constitution and law and intervene in the investigation of circumstances related to the spread materials, especially in the light of alleged signs of systemic unlawful surveillance”. Read more… Source: idfi.ge

Tbilisi. According to information released by Social Justice Center, deprivation of the right of ethnic Georgians to receive education in their own language in Gali took the most severe forms. “Restriction of studies in the native language for Georgian schoolchildren in the Gali district is a problem not only by cause of its discriminatory and assimilative content but also in terms of development of pupils and young people. Due to the fact that schoolchildren speak Megrelian or Georgian at home, while study all subjects in Russian and learn Abkhazian along with foreign languages at school, they cannot speak any of those languages fluently as a result”. Read more… Source: socialjustice.org.ge

Tbilisi. The special report was drawn up on the basis of the visits paid to the assisted living facilities and orphanages for persons with disabilities. “The document discusses the living and infrastructural environment of the facilities, the rule of institutional upbringing, the lack of inclusive care and necessary educational-rehabilitation services, which ultimately lead to the formation of the syndrome of dependence on the institution and reduce the beneficiaries’ skills for independent living. The number of staff is not sufficient and in some cases they are unqualified; hygiene and sanitary norms are not properly observed, which makes the environment especially dangerous in the context of the Covid 19 pandemic. Meals are not diverse and it is necessary to address the issue of unavailability of clean water. Cases of violence are not properly identified, evaluated or responded. No anti-alcoholic or anti-drug efforts are made. Somatic and mental health are problematic, as well as directions of dental and psychosocial treatment. The protection of confidentiality was identified as an important trend”. Read more… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. In 2020, for the first time in the history of Georgian local observer organizations, CDD was able to obtain the necessary resources to observe the elections through international crowdfunding platform GoFundMe. “This year we are glad that the opportunity of crowdfunding became possible through the Georgian platform www.OrbelianiMeti.ge. We hope for you support which is crucial for us to mobilize the necessary resources to support a small but important observation mission in the 2021 municipal elections”. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Tbilisi. IDFI believes, that the experience of recent years, especially the information spread a few days ago about the alleged facts of mass interception, clearly shows that covert surveillance is a systemic challenge for Georgia.  ‘Total surveillance, the use of covert surveillance records as a tool for political retaliation, influencing people and blackmailing them reveal a severe crisis, a democratic setback, and a disregard for human rights standards in the country’, - is mentioned in the information of IDFI, - ‘The institutional arrangement of the State Security Service, the excessive and uncontrolled power concentrated in its hands, the lack of an efficient system of oversight are incompatible with fundamental democratic values and principles. The regulatory and institutional framework governing covert surveillance fails to ensure adequate protection of privacy. There is no effective system of supervision and control in the country and there are no proper procedural guarantees to prevent the abuse of power by the state’.  Read more…   Source: The webpage of the organization

Tbilisi. The Public Defender presents the findings of a special report drawn up on the basis of the visits paid to the assisted living facilities and orphanages for persons with disabilities were presented and the activities planned in the thematic directions were discussed at the meeting. The visits were conducted in 2020 as part of the monitoring of the implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and were aimed at assessing the quality of observance of the Minimum Care Standards in Specialized Living Facilities for Persons with Disabilities and Older People, as well as the Child Care Standards, including in the context of the prevention of the novel coronavirus. Read more…  Source: The webpage of the organization

Tbilisi. The Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association responds to news broadcasted through the mass media on September 13, 2021, and in the previous days. GYLA considers that this information confirms systematic and large-scale facts of alleged unlawful covert eavesdropping and surveillance performed by the State Security Service. “GYLA condemns gross violations in terms of interference in the personal life of people and calls on the Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia to conduct an investigation in time, impartially and effectively”, - is noted in the statement released by the organization, - “Non-governmental organizations, including GYLA, have been pointing to the unlimited and uncontrollable authority of the State Security Service for years. Existing legislation is unable to protect the personal life of an individual from unlawful interference. Covert eavesdropping and surveillance affect the freedom of people. Over the years, the Constitutional Court has been reviewing the June 1, 2017 lawsuit №1231 regarding the constitutionality of several norms related to covert investigative activities, computer data, data bank, and supervision. As the Constitutional Court represents an important mechanism for the protection of human rights, it is crucial to ensure its resolutions are prompt and effective. In view of the above, we consider that the Constitutional Court should timely assess the compatibility of challenged norms with the Constitution of Georgia, in turn, facilitate perfection of legislation regulating covert investigative actions and create solid guarantees in legislation for the protection of human rights”. Read more… Source: The website of the organization

Tbilisi. Media Advocacy Coalition condemns the violence committed against Levan Ablotia and Beka Korshia, a cameraman and a journalist of Mtavari Channel. “We consider that restricting the camera crew and injuring the cameraman on September 15, 2021, in Kareli contain also signs of unlawful interference in journalistic activities, which is a circumstance to be considered during the investigation. The Coalition assumes that the incident occurred in Kareli as a result of the aggressive politics of the ruling party”, - is noted in the statement released by the Coalition. Read more… Source: qartia.ge

Tbilisi. The Public Defender Nino Lomjaria met with Albert Johnson, Head of the OSCE/ODIHR Election Observation Mission. The violations detected during the pre-election period, cases of pressure on opposition parties, alleged cases of dismissal on political grounds, and ineffective response by the law enforcement agencies were the topics of discussion at the meeting. Read more…  Source: The webpage of the organization

Tbilisi. Social Justice Center Appeals to Court to Suspend Construction of Namakhvani HPP and Revoke Construction Permit.  By the organization, ‘The construction permit was unjustifiably issued by the LEPL Technical and Construction Supervision Agency of the Ministry of Economy on April 22, 2020, with gross violations of legal requirements. According to a lawsuit filed by the Social Justice Center, the permitting agency grossly violated the requirements of the law and issued a construction permit without proper justification on an exceptional basis'.  Read more…   Source: The webpage of the organization

Tbilisi. On July 1, 2021, the bill initiated by the members of the Parliament of Georgia was registered. The bill aims to enforce the Judgement of the Constitutional Court of Georgia N1/4/693,857 of June 7, 2019. Notably, the Parliament was obligated to enforce the decision till May 1, 2020.  ‘The judgment of the Constitutional Court has established extremely important constitutional standards for the transparency of the judiciary, although it has not yet been implemented by the Parliament. The implementation of these standards is the direct constitutional obligation of the parliament. In addition, it is part of the so-called Charles Michel Agreement. It should be noted that the registration of the bill was preceded by the workshop of June 16, 2021, organized by IDFI in Borjomi, which was attended by the Legal Issues Committee of the Parliament’, - It is written in the information spread by IDFI.  Read more…   Source: The webpage of the organization

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Tbilisi. The Georgian Democracy Initiative responds to materials about personal life broadcasted on the air of various channels. “Information about facts of alleged unlawful covert surveillance and eavesdropping, performed by the State Security Service against clergy, journalists, teachers and representatives of diplomatic corps, and broadcasted on the air of various TV Companies, has further strengthened existing public suspicions about the presence of a heavy practice of unlawful interference in the sphere of personal life in the country. Publicized information indicates that no group, circle of people, the individual is protected from the control and surveillance of the State Security Service in the country”, - is noted in the statement released by the organization. Read more…  Source: The website of the organization

Tbilisi. Social Justice Center responds to alleged facts exposing unlawful work of the State Security Service and considers that the publicized material demonstrates the hardest practice of unlawful, regular, and total wiretapping and surveillance of people. “In our opinion, this fact is a rough encroachment on the inviolability of private life and undermines opportunities of the country for its democratic development”, - is noted in the statement released by the organization, - “Social Justice Center calls on the Parliament of Georgia to establish a commission, which will investigate alleged facts of mass illegal wiretapping and gross violations of human rights committed by the State Security Service; initiate discussions regarding the fundamental reform of the State Security Service, deconcentration of its excess authority and increase of accountability mechanisms; while on the Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia to launch a timely, effective and independent investigation into current facts as soon as possible and inform society about the progress and results of the investigation”. Read more… Source: The website of the organization