IDFI: fines in Georgia for violating coronavirus restrictions are disproportionately high relative to income

Fines imposed for violating the restrictions implemented by Georgia for the prevention of the spread of the coronavirus exceeds the income ratio imposed by Western European, Scandinavian and other developed countries and are disproportionately high relative to the income of the Georgian population, says the Institute for Development of Freedom of Information( IDFI) in its report ‘Measures against Covid-19 - International Practice.’

IDFI says that in Germany fines for violating restrictions are defined by a person's monthly income, while in New Zealand the citizen receives only a verbal warning in case of the first violation. Meanwhile, in Georgia individuals face a fine of 3,000 GEL ($940.4/€853.5), while legal entities will face a fine of 15,000 GEL ($4,602/€4,267.5).

The IDFI classified countries based on their strict, average and light restrictions. For that, it used The Oxford COVID-19 Government Response Tracker (OxCGRT), which evaluates and compares the measures taken by the governments of different countries to stop the coronavirus.

While calculating the index, they use 17 indicators, out of which eight are related to containment and closure policies (such as school closures and restrictions in movement), four are economic policy indicators (including income support to citizens or provision of foreign aid), and five are health system policy indicators (such as COVID-19 testing regime or emergency investments into healthcare).

In the report, other countries that also have strict restrictions include: Greece (monetary fines of €150-€300), Azerbaijan (monetary fines of $50-$100), New Zealand (verbal warning and then possible imprisonment), Israel (monetary fines of $140-$1,400), Italy (monetary fines of €400-€3000), Spain (monetary fines of €100-€600,000).

Countries with average restrictions are Montenegro, Austria, Dania, Belgium, Czechia, Norway, Armenia, Switzerland, while light restrictions are Finland, South Korea, Netherlands, Germany, Iceland, Taiwan, and Sweden.