PACE Delegation Visits Georgia

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe’s (PACE) monitoring co-rapporteurs for Georgia, Edite Estrela and Sabina Ćudić, visited Georgia on November 10–11 and met with members of the ruling Georgian Dream party in Parliament, as well as with opposition and civil society groups.

The fact-finding mission took place two weeks after the ruling Georgian Dream party announced its appeal to the Constitutional Court seeking to ban three key opposition parties. The co-rapporteurs expressed deep concern over the appeal on October 29, warning that banning the opposition “would effectively establish a one-party dictatorship and be incompatible with Council of Europe membership.”

The Georgian Dream parliamentary delegation to PACE suspended its participation after the 2025 winter session, during which PACE conditionally ratified the credentials of the delegation on the understanding that new parliamentary elections would be set and “all political prisoners” released.

Meeting with the Civil Society, Opposition

The PACE delegation first met with the representatives of the civil society organizations.

Giorgi Burjanadze of the Civil Society Foundation told reporters that the talks focused on the human rights situation in Georgia, the judiciary, legislation affecting civil society organizations and the media, and “all those issues that prompt Georgia’s democratic backsliding.”

The PACE delegation then met with representatives of three major opposition forces – the United National Movement (UNM), Lelo/Strong Georgia, and the Coalition for Change – which the ruling Georgian Dream party seeks to ban through a recently filed Constitutional Court lawsuit.

Tina Bokuchava, the UNM chair, told reporters the discussions focused on the ruling party’s plan to ban opposition parties and the importance of releasing political prisoners. She said the talks also covered the possible use of Council of Europe instruments that could exert pressure on Bidzina Ivanishvili and what she called the Georgian Dream’s “repressive regime.”

Meeting with the Disputed Parliament’s Representatives

On November 11, PACE co-rapporteurs Edite Estrela and Sabina Ćudić met with Shalva Papuashvili, the speaker of Georgia’s disputed Parliament, and Nikoloz Samkharadze, chair of the Parliament’s Foreign Relations Committee.

According to an official statement from Parliament, the talks focused on Georgia’s recent parliamentary and municipal elections, controversial legislation, EU-Georgia relations, and the ruling Georgian Dream party’s appeal to the Constitutional Court to ban key opposition parties.

According to the press release, Papuashvili welcomed the meeting with the co-rapporteurs, noted that Georgia had completed another electoral cycle, and said the next three years “will be dedicated to the development of legal and institutional reforms.”

Papuashvili reportedly claimed there was “no evidence” of fraud in the 2024 parliamentary elections, questioning PACE’s call for snap elections under the resolution adopted during this year’s winter session. He also said the local elections were held “under the same conditions,” noting that two opposition parties ended their boycott by taking part. “This is yet another fact that indirectly confirms the allegations of fraud in the parliamentary elections were fabricated,” Papuashvili said.

The parties also discussed laws adopted by the disputed Parliament, with Shalva Papuashvili briefing the PACE co-rapporteurs on legislative amendments and emphasizing that “the laws being criticized are under consideration by the Constitutional Court and the European Court of Human Rights,” adding, “Therefore, it is preferable to refrain from political assessments and await the court decisions.”

Regarding EU-Georgia relations, Papuashvili “informed the guests about the ongoing fulfillment of the Association Agreement commitments,” the press release said.

The press release further says that “the discussion centered on the claim to the Constitutional Court concerning the recognition of three opposition parties as unconstitutional.”

“Shalva Papuashvili underscored that Georgia remains a loyal member of the PACE and underlined the significance of the respect for the sovereignty, democracy, rule of law, and human rights by the PACE,” the press release concludes.

Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Nikoloz Samkharadze said that among the topics discussed, the PACE co-rapporteurs raised the issue of the Georgian parliamentary delegation’s participation in PACE. “However, we clearly reiterated that our suspension of participation is due to the provision in one of PACE’s resolutions calling for snap elections. We told them this is a red line for us. We believe that this provision is politically motivated. If this position changes, our full participation in PACE will be restored,” Samkharadze said.

The PACE co-rapporteurs also met with members of the parliamentary groups of Georgian Dream’s spin-off, People’s Power, as well as with representatives of the opposition party Gakharia For Georgia, which recently ended its nearly yearlong parliamentary boycott.

Also Read:

• 02/10/2025 – PACE Resolution Warns of Impending “One-Party Dictatorship Incompatible with Council of Europe membership”
• 10/04/2025 – PACE Condemns Rapid Democratic Backsliding in Georgia, Urges Repeal of Controversial Laws