EU ambassador: It’s likely Georgian political parties built a large consensus on election bill
EU Ambassador to Georgia Carl Hartzell has welcomed the agreement on the election bill by Georgian political parties. Photo: Carl Hartzell’s Twitter page.
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EU Ambassador to Georgia Carl Hartzell has stated earlier today that ‘it is likely Georgian political parties have built a large consensus on the election bill, in line with the EU-mediated agreement signed by the majority of the parties back in April.'
Hartzell said that now the EU is waiting for the bill to be sent to the CoE’s Venice Commission for recommendations.
Ruling Georgian Dream party MP Shalva Papuashvili has stated that the bill will be translated and be sent to the Venice Commission supposedly by the end of the day.
He stated that the bill is more comprehensive and includes more reforms than was proposed in the EU-mediated agreement.
The bill has been agreed by the parties. Committee hearings around the bill will launch this week,” Papuashvili said.
He stated that the bill pushes forward three innovations - a face recognition programme, barcoded ballot papers and counting of votes under a high-resolution camera.
The European Georgia opposition party has made a final decision earlier today and stated that the party will not enter the state legislature, while three of its five mandates have already been taken up.
European Parliament members Andrius Kubilius, Michael Gahler and Viola von Cramon-Taubadel call on the opposition United National Movement party to sign the EU-mediated agreement and enter the parliament of Georgia.
The United States welcomes the agreement reached by the government of Georgia and several opposition parties on April 19, under the mediation of European Union President Charles Michel, to bring an end to Georgia’s political crisis, announces the US Embassy to Georgia.
The European Council President Charles Michel will visit Georgia in the afternoon to meet with the leaders of the political parties who signed his proposal yesterday in Tbilisi to solve the political tension in the country which began following the 2020 parliamentary elections. The proposal by Michel covers electoral and justice reforms, offers pardon for all violations and convictions stemming from the 19-21 June 2019 protests and the conduct of repeat parliamentary elections in 2022 if the ruling party fails to receive at least 43 per cent of votes in this year’s municipal elections.
The Lelo opposition party has submitted a bill requesting the state legislature declare a moratorium on the election of new judges for the country’s Supreme Court and new members in the High Council of Justice before the implementation of the EU-mediated agreement.
Opposition MPs from Lelo, Strategy Agmashenebli, Khatuna Samnidze from Republican Party, independent MP David Bakradzea and MP Zurab Japaridze from Girchi-More Freedom have demanded the postponement of elections for four new members of Georgia’s High Council of Justice.
The ruling Georgian Dream party and opposition were unable to come to an agreement on an amnesty bill for June 2019 protests, according to the EU-mediated agreement signed by both parties back in April 2021.
MEP Marina Kaljurand has once again urged Georgian opposition MPs to take up their parliamentary mandates in line with the EU-mediated agreement.
The European Parliament has appointed MEPs Marina Kaljurand and Miriam Lexmann to co-facilitate Georgian parliamentary mediation and dialogue with MEP Viola von Cramon, who will chair the EP’s Jean Monnet Dialogue for Peace and Democracy, the European Parliament Democracy Support and Election Coordination Group (DEG) has reported.