EU Ambassador announces freezing of bloc’s Peace Facility support following Georgia's adoption of transparency law

Security Sector Reform is a long-term political process - EU Ambassado...

“It is my pleasure to welcome you to this EU-funded event to discuss fundamental topics for any democratic society: national security and societal resilience.Security Sector Reform is a long-term political process. It goes to the heart of power relations in any country. In order to succeed, security sector reform needs to be nationally driven and based on political commitment and leadership, inter-institutional cooperation and broad stakeholder participation.Democratic oversight is equally important for a strong and resilient national security system. Accountability, transparency and openness must be applied and legal guarantees put in place to prevent arbitrary decision-making and possible abuse of the security structures.This is why a strong oversight mechanism of the Georgia’s security system has been included also as one of the nine steps attached to Georgia’s EU candidate status. Addressing and improving the parliamentary oversight of security services would be necessary for Georgia to continue on its EU accession path. [step 5 - Further improve the implementation of parliamentary oversight notably of the security services…]Despite some reforms undertaken in this regard in the past, the reports that will be presented today unfortunately reveal serious concerns. Research findings show that the parliamentary and judicial oversight of security services in Georgia are still too weak and inefficient.The hosts of today’s gathering are three civil society organisations – the Social Justice Center, CRRC Georgia and Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association. These organisations have been implementing this EU-funded security sector oversight project for the last three years.Three years marked by increasingly hostile environment for civil society oversight. Today, in this crucial moment for the future of Georgia, civil society organisations have become direct targets of disinformation and propaganda campaigns and their space has been curtailed by a combination of legal and non-legal measures. In this environment, meaningful oversight has become even harder.This is incompatible with Georgia’s aspiration to join the European Union. As HRVP Borrell said last week, these are signals of a shift towards authoritarianism, which takes Georgia away from the EU path.As the EU ambassador, my sincere hope is that the future developments will result in re-establishing of the favourable environment for meaningful reforms, including the security sector reform and building of the National Security System aligned with the European standards.The standards are respect of human rights, access to credible information and free and independent media, and undisturbed functioning of effective democratic control and oversight”, -  EU Ambassador said

Over 200,000 adult citizens of Georgia do not own a passport, an elect...

The Service Development Agency of the Ministry of Justice informed about this to the chairperson of the "National Movement" faction, Tina Bokuchava, in response to a parliamentary question.In addition, according to the document, as of September 30, a total of 882,052 citizens, both adults and minors, do not have identity documents in Georgia.According to the information provided to the MP by the agency, as of September 30, a total of 458,234 citizens have the passport of an active citizen of Georgia. Among them, 293,863 adults and 164,371 minors.As for the number of citizens holding electronic ID cards, according to official data, a total of 3,345,274 citizens have the document. Among them, 3,203,702 adults and 141,572 minor citizens.In addition, according to the document, 395 citizens have non-electronic identity certificates in the country.

Georgian PM unveils plan for “balanced” regional development, environm...

Kobakhidze said over GEL 2 billion ($730mln) would be allocated for the development of regions through the Municipal Development Fund while a special programme focused on infrastructure development in settlements across the occupation line separating the Russian-occupied regions from the rest of the country would receive an annual allocation of GEL 20 million ($7.29mln).“Under the rural support programme, a minimum of GEL 400 million ($145.73mln) will be allocated over the next four years. At least GEL 155 million ($56.47mln) will be allocated under the Mountain Fund [...] It is crucial to ensure that the benefits are evenly distributed across the country, reaching different regions. Investments will continue to be made in this regard”, Kobakhidze said.In environmental initiatives, the Government aims to implement modern early warning systems over the next four years and increase the area of protected areas in the country by an additional 100,000 hectares, the Prime Minister said.“Also, 15,000 hectares of forest will be restored and planted. In the last four years, we have increased the pace of reforestation by about five times compared to the previous government. It is not even worth comparing; the amount of forests restored and planted by them was so insignificant in our country”, he said.Kobakhidze also highlighted reduction in air pollution in major cities such as the capital city of Tbilisi and Rustavi, saying air pollution had decreased by 25 percent and 35 percent respectively over the past few years.The Prime Minister said GEL 200 million ($72.87mln) would be allocated for the municipal transport programme over the next four years.“This funding will be used to improve the transport infrastructure and services in municipalities and regions [...] The combined budget for all 68 municipalities totalled around GEL 1.3 billion ($470mln) in 2012, mainly allocated for administrative expenses. However, the budget for 2024 in the regions alone has already reached GEL 3.34 billion ($1.22bln), with a projected figure of GEL 4.59 billion ($1.67bln) for 2028”, he said.“As for Tbilisi, the budget of the capital city was only GEL 657 million ($239.36mln) in 2012. The budget has already exceeded GEL 2 billion ($730mln) in 2024, and the forecast for 2028 is GEL 2.25 billion ($820mln). This amount does not include projects financed from the central budget. Tbilisi City Hall has significant plans for expanding the metropolitan network, rehabilitating avenues, and more. Additional resources beyond the GEL 2.25 billion will be allocated from the central budget for these projects”, Kobakhidze added.The Prime Minister also said the budget of the western city of Kutaisi had been GEL 62 million ($22.59mln) in 2012, before increasing to GEL 195 million ($71.04mln) the following year. Government projections by 2028 put it at GEL 225 million ($81.97mln), he added.Budget for the central-eastern city of Rustavi had been GEL 49 million ($17.85mln) in 2012, he said, adding the figure was expected to rise to GEL 180 million ($65.58mln) by 2025 and reach GEL 210 million ($76.51mln) by 2028. The Black Sea port city of Poti had a budget of GEL 31 million ($11.29mln) in 2012, the PM noted, before adding the number was anticipated to surpass GEL 100 million ($36.43mln) next year and reach about GEL115 million ($41.90mln) by 2028.In public services, the Government head contrasted the number of 12 Public Service Halls across the country with the opening of 109 more venues since the year, with plans to open 12 more between 2024-2025 to complete the project of their expansion.“This will ensure that [Public Service Halls] are available throughout the country, and all municipalities have the necessary infrastructure. Additionally, the Mobile [Public Service Hall] project has been implemented to provide relevant services to even remote villages. The number of services offered in the [venues] has also doubled, which is crucial for our citizens”, Kobakhidze said.He also emphasised the importance of the initiative of systematic registration of land, calling it a “crucial” project and thanking the Ministry of Justice and Minister Rati Bregadze for initiating and implementing it.“Over the recent years, one and a half billion plots of land have been surveyed under this project, and one billion plots have already been registered. Additional funding will be allocated in the coming years to register 500,000 plots to their respective owners”, Kobakhidze said.Addressing the tourism sector, the Prime Minister said the country would attract eight million visitors this year and increase the number to 11 million by 2028.“Tourism is an important sector for our country’s economy, and we take pride in being known for our hospitality. The development of tourism not only has an economic impact, but also a cultural significance for us. We can be proud of the significant growth we have achieved in this area”, Kobakhidze said.“We had 4.7 million visitors in the country in 2012. This figure is expected to reach almost eight million by 2024. The number of visitors is projected to increase to 11 million by 2028. This shows a very positive growth trend in the number of visitors”, he added.He noted income from tourism was projected to increase from $1.4 billion in 2012 to $6.4 billion by 2028, calling it an “impressive” result.“Of course, these incomes will ultimately affect incomes and social status of our population”, Kobakhidze added.The Prime Minister further presented “impressive data” regarding accommodation facilities, including hotels and guest houses.“There were 777 hotels in our country with 23,000 places in 2012. The number of hotels is projected to increase to 2,363 with 108,000 places by 2024. This represents a 4.5-fold increase in the number of places in the hotel sector. The number of hotels is expected to reach 2,680 with 142,700 places by 2028, which is nearly six times the number in 2012”, he said.Kobakhidze revealed plans to support the growth of the industry through private investments of about GEL 1 billion ($360mln) in the hotel sector, as well as allocating over GEL 1 billion for the development of tourist infrastructure, including urban renewal projects.

Parliamentary majority moves to reinitiate impeachment proceedings aga...

“As you are aware, on October 16, 2023, the Constitutional Court of Georgia ruled that Salome Zourabichvili violated the Constitution by undertaking foreign visits without obtaining the government’s consent, as required by Article 52 of the Constitution.Following this ruling, Zourabichvili retained her position solely due to the support of parliamentarians from the radical opposition. With their backing, she has continued disregarding the Constitution by making several foreign trips without government consent, including visits to France, Germany, Poland, and Belgium just last week.Before the court’s decision, foreign nations and organizations might have asserted ignorance regarding the requirement for presidential approval for such visits. However, after the ruling, any reception of Salome Zourabichvili without the necessary consent not only disrespects the Georgian people and their constitutional order but also violates the principle of non-interference in internal matters, contradicting our shared European values.The Constitution is the supreme document embodying the will of the Georgian people, and its open and deliberate violation cannot go unanswered. Therefore, the parliamentary majority has decided to reinitiate the impeachment process and prepare a new constitutional submission, which will be presented to the Constitutional Court before the parliamentary elections.Once the Constitutional Court affirms the violation, the new parliament will proceed to remove Salome Zourabichvili from office via impeachment during its very first sessions, with a minimum of 100 votes in favour.Salome Zourabichvili’s term concludes this year, which means that impeaching her would reduce her time in office by only one month. While the impact on her remaining term is largely symbolic, the legal and political significance of this decision is considerable. Deliberate and recurrent violations of the supreme law of the Georgian people must not go unpunished.It is essential to remember Salome Zourabichvili not as a former president but as a displaced one. This precedent will serve as a strong deterrent against future constitutional violations and will help fortify Georgian democracy,” stated Papuashvili.

Blackmail continues against Bidzina Ivanishvili, to take a step that i...

Prime Minister Kobakhidze noted that the purpose of such steps is to force Bidzina Ivanishvili to take a step that is against the national interests of Georgia."The blackmail against Mr. Bidzina Ivanishvili continues. You know that he is already under de facto sanctions, he has 2 billion US dollars frozen in Europe, but now the blackmail continues in a different form, you hear threats to impose formal sanctions. Their goal is - they want to force Bidzina Ivanishvili to take a step that is against Georgia's national interests what doesn't work won't work even after years. Therefore, this blackmail is also doomed to failure," said the Prime Minister.