PM Defends Controversial Bill on Constitutional Court

Contrary to opponents’ claims, legislative amendments to the law on Constitutional Court, which would increase the quorum required to decide cases, will “strengthen” the Court, PM Giorgi Kvirikashvili said.

The bill, proposed by the ruling GDDG party, was adopted by the Parliament in two final readings on May 13-14. Opposition lawmakers, as well as MPs from the Republican Party, who remain in coalition government with GDDG party, were against.

The bill, which might be vetoed by the President and which proposes to impose a two-thirds majority, instead of a simple majority, required for the 9-member Court to decide cases, has also been criticized by rights groups.

Coalition for Independent and Transparent Judiciary, a group uniting dozens of non-governmental organizations, said in a statement on May 14 that high quorum is “problematic” which is not in line with the international standards.

“The amendments pose threat to country’s democratic development,” it said. “There is a high probability that it [high quorum] will paralyze the Court.”

In an interview with Imedi TV on May 14, few hours after being elected as ruling GDDG party’s chairman, PM Kvirikashvili denied allegations that the government tries to weaken the Constitutional Court.

“These changes strengthen independence of the Constitutional Court,” the PM said. “These changes rule out a situation where an important decision can be taken by the Constitutional Court as a result of outside influence on one or two [judges]. The idea of increasing of quorum serves this very purpose – to prevent attempts to exert outside pressure [on the Court].”

“We see political influence from our opposition parties on the Constitutional Court,” he said and added without specifying that some of the recent rulings of the Constitutional Court were made as a result of this political pressure. “As you know those people who are [members of the Constitutional Court] were appointed by the previous administration [when the UNM party was in power].”

Currently all but one of the members of the Constitutional Court, were appointed when the UNM party was in government. Only one member, Merab Turava, was elected as Constitutional Court judge by the sitting Parliament. 10-year term of four judges, among them of the Constitutional Court Chairman Giorgi Papuashvili, will expire in late September. Two of them should be replaced by new judges appointed by President Giorgi Margvelashvili; one has to be appointed by the Parliament and the fourth one by the Supreme Court.

UNM MPs slammed the bill as a “punitive measure” against the Constitutional Court for taking number of decisions over the past eight months, which angered the government, among them on the complaint filed by ex-mayor of Tbilisi Gigi Ugulava; Rustavi 2 TV case; financial supervisory agency, and most recently on surveillance regulations.

Asked why the ruling party rushed the bill through the Parliament without sending it for review to the Council of Europe’s advisory body for constitutional affairs, Venice Commission, PM Kvirikashvili said that the review would have taken “two-three months” which would have made it impossible for the Parliament to adopt the bill as the legislative body will be on recess related both to the summer break and campaign for the October 8 elections.

Co-rapporteurs from the Parliamentary Assembly of Council of Europe (PACE), who visited Georgia earlier this month, said the Venice Commission was ready to adopt its opinion on the bill at its June plenary session.

Along with disputed legislative clauses and laws, the Constitutional Court also has the authority to adjudicate disputes related to election and referendum results. In the view of upcoming parliamentary elections planned for October 8, this issue was also raised during parliamentary debates over the bill, when UNM MP Irma Nadirashvili told GDDG lawmakers: “You try to adopt this bill at any cost, because this is vitally important for you. You think that you won’t be able to rig election results without this law.”

GDDG MP Eka Beselia, who was a co-sponsor of the bill, responded that these remarks by MP Nadirashvili was exposing UNM’s possible intention to use its loyal judges in the Constitutional Court to try annul election results if unfavorable for the opposition party. “That’s a very dangerous scenario,” she added.