Inter-Agency Group Pledges to Respond to Electoral Violations
In an attempt to demonstrate the authorities’ resolve to tackle violations during the electoral campaign, Justice Minister Eka Tkeshelashvili announced that two local officials in Adjara had been suspended for “exerting pressure” on local election watchdog activists.
Tkeshelashvili chairs a government inter-agency group to coordinate efforts to secure free elections. Speaking at a news conference on December 15 she said that the group had been looking into all reported violations. Most of them, she said, had proven groundless.
“Our major task is to immediately check out any alleged violation and to respond if confirmed,” Tkeshelashvili said. “All political parties and non-governmental organizations, and even individual citizens, should know that if they know of violations, we are ready to receive this information and to respond in a timely manner.”