PACE co-rapporteurs call on the Georgian authorities to “stop politically motivated legal actions against the opposition”
PACE co-rapporteurs are calling on the Georgian authorities to “stop politically motivated legal actions against the opposition.” The corresponding statement by the co-rapporteurs of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) for Georgia — Edite Estrela and Sabina Ćudić — was published on the official PACE website.
The statement notes that following their visit to Georgia on 10–12 November, Estrela and Ćudić called on the Georgian authorities to fully implement the recommendations of the Venice Commission regarding the law on foreign agents and the law on administrative offences.
“We reiterate what the Assembly already stated in its last resolution on Georgia. The Law on Transparency of Foreign Influence, the Georgian Foreign Agents Registration Act, the Law on Grants and the current Law on Administrative Offences are incompatible with European standards and norms, and as the Venice Commission concluded, they should be repealed,” the co-rapporteurs said.
They also expressed deep concern about the recent criminal charges against “leaders of democratic opposition parties who, as a result of fabricated accusations against the state, may face long-term imprisonment.”
“These charges are clearly politically motivated and should be seen in connection with the recent appeals to the Constitutional Court to ban several major opposition parties in Georgia. Such actions have no place in a democratic society. We urge the authorities to end these actions, which would effectively establish dictatorship in Georgia,” the co-rapporteurs declared.
The statement notes that during their visit to Georgia, the co-rapporteurs met with the Chairman of Parliament, members of the “Georgian Dream” parliamentary faction, and representatives of both parliamentary and non-parliamentary opposition parties.
They noted that they welcomed being granted permission to meet imprisoned political leaders, but expressed regret that government representatives refused to meet with them, and that they were also not allowed to visit Mzia Amaghlobeli in prison.
