US Embassy disappointed by Supreme Court appointments in Georgia prior to reform assessment
“The goal now must be to build an impartial, transparent, merit-based judicial system that the people of Georgia can have full confidence in and that allows the full participation of the many qualified, ethical judges and lawyers who work with integrity to promote the rule of law,” the embassy says. Photo: US Embassy in Georgia.
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The United States Embassy to Georgia has expressed its disappointment that the Georgian parliament is ‘moving forward with Supreme Court appointments’ before the completion of an independent assessment of the judicial reform.
It also raises concern over the judicial appointments being proceeded without the participation of non-judge members of the High Council of Justice, noting that the Georgian people ‘are supposed to have a voice in the selection of these influential and important judges’ through non-judge members.
U.S. Embassy Statement on Supreme Court Appointments https://t.co/AFCECIlqiC
— U.S. Embassy Tbilisi (@usingeo) November 26, 2021
The exclusion of independent voices from this process adds to the impression that Supreme Court judicial appointments are being made without meaningful transparency, accountability or impartiality,” the statement reads.
The Parliament's Legal Affairs Committee has been reviewing four candidates, who were selected by the High Council of Justice, for positions in the country’s Supreme Court on November 25-26.
The process of interviewing the candidates for the Supreme Court in the Parliament ends today.
The state legislature approves judges for the Supreme Court with at least 76 (of a total 150) votes. Currently, there are five vacant positions in the Supreme Court.
The US Embassy ‘strongly encourages’ the parliament of Georgia ‘to prioritise the appointment of impartial, independent, non-judge members to the High Council of Justice’ and to complete the independent assessment of the ‘previous waves of reform by Spring 2022.’
The goal now must be to build an impartial, transparent, merit-based judicial system that the people of Georgia can have full confidence in and that allows the full participation of the many qualified, ethical judges and lawyers who work with integrity to promote the rule of law,” the embassy says.
The international community and local NGOs were actively calling on the Georgian government to uphold the process of appointment of judges to the Supreme Court before the fundamental reforms are implemented, however, the state legislature did not suspend the process.
The EU-mediated agreement, which was signed by the ruling Georgian Dream party and a majority of opposition parties in April this year, committed its signatories to ensure large-scale electoral and judiciary reforms, however, the ruling party withdrew from it in late July, stating that they have already taken ‘major steps’ to reform the country’s judiciary and pledged the process will be ‘successfully completed.’