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CEC Refuses to Release Key Information to Public Defender

The Central Election Commission (CEC) has refused to hand over to the Public Defender’s Office (PDO) copies of signatures made by voters at some polling stations before they voted in the January 5 presidential election.


The refusal, according to the Public Defender’s Office, constituted a breach of the law. In a statement on February 20, the PDO requested that the courts impose a fine of between GEL 800 and GEL 2,000 on the commission. “The fine does not mean that the commission no longer needs to release the requested information,” the PDO added.


The PDO’s request for the information follows allegations that voter turnout, particularly in the Kvemo Kartli and Samtskhe-Javakheti regions was artificially inflated to the benefit of President Saakashvili. The OSCE/ODIHR post-election interim report also said that “a significant number” of polling stations reported “unusually high turnout during the last three hours of voting.” The Public Defender’s Office was especially concerned with polling stations in Marneuli and Tsalka (both in Kvemo Kartli), Akhalkalaki and Ninotsminda (both in Samtskhe-Javakheti), Akhalgori (in the Georgian-administered part of breakaway South Ossetia), Tsalenjikha (Samegrelo region), and Khashuri and Kareli (both in Shida Kartli region). 
 
The Public Defender’s Office rejected the CEC explanation for its refusal to hand over copies of voters’ signatures – that it could only be done in the event of a vote re-count – denouncing it as totally unacceptable. “The Public Defender has a right to access any type of documentation, even confidential ones,” the PDO added.

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