The Daily Beat: 17 May
Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili arrived in Reykjavik, attending the 4th Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Council of Europe. Irakli Garibashvili addressed the Summit and held sideline meetings with the President of Cyprus, Nikos Christodoulides, and the Prime Minister of the Netherlands, Mark Rutte. In his address, the Prime Minister emphasized Georgia’s commitment to peace, openness, and democracy, reassuring his European colleagues of the solidity of his country’s EU aspirations. According to the prime minister’s press office, bilateral talks with Cypriot and Dutch leaders mainly focused on Georgia’s EU integration process and EU-related reforms. At the summit, the press office reported that on behalf of Georgia, Irakli Garibashvili aligned with the resolution on Ukraine.
Parliament elected three non-judge members of the High Council of Justice (HCoJ), the judiciary’s oversight body. A scandal erupted among the opposition when it turned out that the candidates favored by the ruling party were endorsed by five MPs coming from the Georgian Dream’s arch-rival, the United National Movement/Strength in Unity bloc. The opposition, CSOs, and the media cry foul and vote-buying. Recently, the US sanctioned four judges, including the current and former members of the HCoJ.
In an interview with Public Broadcaster, the chair of the ruling Georgian Dream party, Irakli Kobakhidze, fielded a question on the possibility of “new steps” in relations with Russia after the Kremlin decided to lift the visa ban and allow direct flights to Tbilisi. Kobakhidze spoke positively about Russia’s move and claimed his party’s actions are about “strengthening the country’s sovereignty” and “at least keeping this perspective related to the restoration of territorial integrity.” He cautioned the audience that sometimes “fast progress” is impossible. Public Broadcaster question and Kobakhidze’s response fall into the emerging pattern of dangling the possibility of unspecified progress over Georgia’s occupied provinces, which government-affiliated experts and social media accounts kicked off after the visas/flights breakthrough from Moscow.
The CSOs involved in the Open Government Partnership/OGP process released a joint statement expressing concerns regarding the “flagrant violation of the fundamental values and principles of OGP by the government of Georgia.” In a joint statement, they noted that in recent years the government had demonstrated a “clear misalignment” with the core values of OGP by endorsing the Russian-style law on “foreign agents,” undermining the judiciary, launching direct attacks on SCOs and critical media. The signatory organizations urge OGP to call on the Government of Georgia to halt the public attacks and smear campaigns on civil society and media representatives and uphold OGP values and principles.
On the occasion of the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia (IDAHOT), the Public Defender’s Office released a statement saying that despite the existing legal guarantees, the human rights of LGBT+ people remain a serious concern. The statement also reads that the “insulting” and “hateful statements” made by public figures recently “prevent the creation of an equal environment in the country and incite discrimination.”
The State Security Service reported the detention of six Georgian citizens on charges of supporting the Islamic State terrorist organization. According to the security agency, the detainees had a connection with one of the influential leaders of the Islamic State and were planning various terrorist in several countries. Information on this counter-terrorism operation was shared with international partners, the security service said in its announcement.
