Norway calls on all political parties to enable new, more diverse parliament in Georgia
Ambassador Anne-Kirsti Karlsen said Norway remainssteadfast in support for Georgia’s democracy and European path. Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge
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Norway calls on all political parties in Georgia ‘to find common ground and to enable the new and more diverse parliament to play its full role in Georgia’s democracy’.
Ambassador of Norway to the OSCE Anne-Kirsti Karlsen said at the Permanent Council in Vienna on November 27 that Norway 'commends Georgia’s efforts to organise elections in a transparent way during a challenging pandemic situation'.
However, she said they 'regret the opposition parties’ decision to boycott the second round of elections and the parliament'.
Georgia needs a functioning parliament and, not least, a functioning parliamentary opposition. This is especially important in a time when the country is facing serious challenges due to the pandemic”, Ambassador Karlsen stated.
She also noted that Norway supports the conclusions in the preliminary joint statement from international observers on the first round of the Georgian parliamentary elections and looks forward to the OSCE/ODIHR final report.
Norway commends Georgia’s efforts to organise elections in a transparent way during a challenging pandemic situation.
— NorwayOSCE (@NorwayOSCE) November 27, 2020
For full statement: https://t.co/1WSGoVaejS@GeorgiainAus @AlMissionVienna @osce_odihr @NorwayMFA @SandAndresen @NorwayAmbOSCE
The Ambassador further noted that ‘shortcomings in the electoral process identified by local and international observers must be addressed’, while ‘the responsible authorities must swiftly investigate all allegations in an impartial and transparent manner, and resolve them in accordance with the law in a timely way’.
- PACE calls on Georgian opposition to take up mandates in parliament
- EU Delegation to Georgia expects all political parties can overcome differences to take up parliamentary seats
Commending Georgian authorities and ODIHR with the efforts to implement an election observation mission amid the pandemic, Ambassador Karlsensaid Norway will ‘continue to stay closely engaged’ and ‘remain steadfast’ in their support for Georgia’s democracy and European path.
David McAllister (EPP, Germany), Marina Kaljurand (S&D, Estonia), Sven Mikser (S&D, Estonia), and Viola von Cramon-Taubadel (The Greens/EFA, Germany) once again congratulated Georgia, 'a key ally of the EU, on organising these elections despite a challenging epidemiological context'. However, they 'regret the fact that opposition candidates did not contest seats in the second round'.
All eight opposition parties who crossed the one per cent election threshold in the October 31 parliament elections have signed an agreement earlier today not to take up their mandates in parliament. 12 other opposition parties, who were unable to enter the legislative body, also signed the agreement and stated that the elections ‘were not legitimate as they were fabricated.’ All 20 signatory parties have stated that they will continue to fight against the government.
“Georgia’s parliamentary elections were competitive and, overall, fundamental freedoms were respected”, the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) said in its preliminary statement today.
The joint observation mission, composed of the International Organization for Democracy, Media and Cultural Exchange, its international observers, and the Center for Development, says the voting process is taking place in a mostly calm and organized environment, although minor procedural irregularities have been reported.