The Daily Beat: 1 December
Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili participated in the world leaders’ summit at the 28th UN Climate Change Conference in Dubai, voicing Georgia’s vision on combating the increasingly severe impacts of climate change worldwide. While in Dubai, PM Garibashvili also met with the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, and discussed the reform process in the context of EU integration. According to the official press releases, President Michel welcomed Georgia’s continued commitment to the reform agenda, while PM Garibashvili expressed optimistic expectations on the country’s EU candidacy.
The National Bank reported that its Board has appointed two new Vice Presidents, Ekaterine Mikabadze and Ekaterine Galdava. According to the NBG announcement, the newly appointed Vice Presidents have already been and will continue to be members of the Board, the supreme body of the financial regulator. The candidacies of Mikaberidze and Galdava for the position of members of the Board were supported by the Parliament of Georgia in 2021 for seven years, i.e., from 2021 to 2028. Acting President Natia Turnava’s controversial decision to shield US-sanctioned former Prosecutor General Otar Partskhaladze led to the prompt resignation of NBG’s three Vice Presidents in September.
In the run-up to the European Council’s decision on Georgia’s EU candidacy, dozens of local civil society organizations stepped up their efforts, launching an active pro-EU campaign and holding meetings with the diplomatic missions of EU member states. During these meetings, representatives of local CSOs hand over their joint letters to the ambassadors, addressing respective governments to support Georgia’s EU candidacy status. On December 14-15, the European Council will decide whether to grant Georgia EU candidate status, following the European Commission’s positive recommendation on November 8.
Some Chiatura miners went on strike over unfulfilled promises by their employer, Georgian Manganese. They demand that Georgian Manganese switch to a 12-hour working day and reduce the number of days they work, claiming that their current working day is 8 hours, but they must produce a 12-hour standard. A miner at the Chiatura claimed that the employer had promised to move them to a new shift schedule five months ago but that the commitment still needed to be fulfilled.
Parliament hastily approved controversial additional amendments to the Defense Code in the third hearing, with 81 votes in favor. The legislative process unfolded quickly, as the bill was passed in the first hearing on November 29, just one day before its final adoption. Amendments envisage a provision allowing individuals to appeal to the court against their inclusion in the military register. However, such appeals won’t suspend the immediate enforcement of the conscript’s duty to begin service. Under the old version of the law, the appeal temporarily suspended the conscription order.
