The Daily Beat: 27 March

Dear readers, nasty flu unfortunately forced me to suspend reporting last week. Now that the flu symptoms are in strategic retreat, and I continue to recover, from Monday, The Daily Beat will resume reporting. In the meantime, here is a recap of last week’s main developments.

Georgian Dream’s parliamentary leader, Mamuka Mdinaradze, announced a bill referred to as the “successor parties law,” which seeks to prohibit opposition groups deemed “hostile” to the state. He stated that the law specifically targets political forces akin to the “collective UNM,” characterizing them as “anti-Georgian, anti-constitutional, anti-national, and criminal.”

Last week, the Georgian Dream parliamentary commission continued its hearings into alleged systemic crimes under the previous United National Government. The commission summoned Mamuka Khazaradze and Badri Japaridze, leaders of the Lelo party, who both refused to testify before the commission.

The commission addressed the Prosecutor’s Office to charge Khazaradze for not appearing before the commission. As a result, an investigation has begun against the leader of the Lelo party for not complying with a request from the Georgian Dream parliamentary commission. Now Kazaradze faces a possible fine or up to one year in prison.

In addition to investigating alleged cases of business racketeering, the GD commission also summoned former high-ranking Georgian military officers who were in charge of operations during the Russo-Georgia war in 2008. This move has sparked outrage among the public and veterans, who believe that the GD commission is attempting to place blame on the Georgian side for initiating the hostilities and for the total failure in August 2008.

Last week, Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili visited the Baltic states, where she met with the presidents, speakers, members of parliament, and other top officials from Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia. During her visit to Vilnius, Zurabishvili also addressed Lithuania’s Seimas, reminding the Lithuanian MPs of the “existential challenge” that Georgia faces and urging them to act swiftly to prevent the country from falling under Russian influence.

On March 27, the foreign ministry announced the appointment of new ambassadors to the Republic of Turkey, the Swiss Confederation and the Principality of Liechtenstein, and the Republic of Cuba.  As part of these postings, Shota Getsadze, a former lifetime judge known for his ruling on the revocation of Bidzina Ivanishvili’s Georgian citizenship in 2011, has been appointed as Georgia’s ambassador to the Swiss Confederation.

Elene Khoshtaria, one of the leaders of the opposition Coalition for Change, was detained by police during a rally on March 28. She reported experiencing degrading treatment while in custody, stating that her hands were handcuffed and several female police officers forcibly stripped her naked. Khoshtaria also claimed that the police caused injuries to her jaw and teeth. She was released from detention the following day.

The U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee passed the MEGOBARI Act, a bipartisan bill reaffirming support for the Georgian people and the country’s Euro-Atlantic integration, TV Pirveli reported on March 27. The legislation also includes provisions for sanctions against officials of the ruling Georgian Dream party.

The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe has adopted a resolution highlighting concerns regarding democratic backsliding and the challenges affecting the rule of law, human rights, and public confidence in democratic institutions in Georgia. It also states that these developments “are not conducive to holding the 2025 local elections in a trust-based environment.”

The Council of Europe’s Commissioner for Human Rights, Michael O’Flaherty, has urged stronger human rights protections in Georgia. In a memorandum published on March 26, he expresses concerns about the country’s human rights situation and recommends that the government uphold democratic values, ensure accountability for law enforcement abuses, and protect freedoms such as assembly and expression.