Web Portal on Human Rights in Georgia

May 13 issue of the Rezonansi newspaper relates regarding the ongoing dispute between the journalists of the newspaper and the CEC. The article as well remarks that the DEC of Nadzaladevi district and CEC haven’t granted the application of the journalists. The journalists on their part demand making up of administrative offence protocol regarding the people that had interfered with the correspondents hampering their professional activity and insulted them during the interim elections of April 27.

Georgian Central Election Commission’s letter to Human Rights Center states that four majoritarian candidates, who lost interim parliamentary elections of April 27, will have their 5 000 lari deposits recovered. In accordance to the old provision in the law, candidates had transferred the sum to the CEC account to get registered in the elections.

Constitutional Court of Georgia upheld the constitutional lawsuit of Human Rights Center on the case Besik Adamia vs Parliament of Georgia. Hence, majoritarian candidates will not have to have 5 000 lari deposit to participate in the parliamentary elections.

Marneuli district deputy governor Otar Chanturia complains about his intimidation and blames district governor Paata Abramishvili in the oppression. He said the governor compels him to write resignation letter and leave job voluntarily. Chanturia is not going to resign and intends to appeal to the court.

International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy (ISFED) studied ongoing personnel changes in the local self-governmental institutions after parliamentary elections of 2012. According to the public data collected from all municipalities of Georgia, 1790 employees were fired from local governmental agencies from October 1, 2012 to February 28, 2013. The personnel reduction took place in 54 district administrations and 25 municipal boards out of total 69 districts.

On February 26, Georgian Constitutional Court heard the complaint of Citizen Besik Adamia. Plaintiff  protests the amendments that were introduced to the Election Code by the Georgian Parliament, and according to them only the independent deputy presented by the initiative group, will have to pay as a election sponsor 5 000 GEL on the account of Central Election Commission (CEC). Denoted amendments were introduced to the Election Code in the end of 2011.

In accordance to the law, members of municipal boards do not get salaries. Only chairman, deputy chairman and chairmen of the board fractions receive salaries. Despite that, the municipal board passed resolution based on which 500 lari is transferred to each board member every month.

After the parliamentary elections of October 1, 2012 governors of Gori, Kaspi, Kareli and Khashuri districts resigned. Before resignation, Kareli district former governor Ilia Burjanadze said financial police officers started inspection of his office. In all other cases, the district governors said reason of their resignation was new political reality and cohabitation.

On February 11, 2013, Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association held presentation of the report of monitoring pre-election environment, the Election Day and the post-election period. The report covers the results of monitoring from August 1 through October 20, 2012 (GYLA started monitoring of pre-election processes much earlier, on January 1, 2012, and evaluated the pre-election environment in two interim reports).