Georgian Parliament overrides President's veto on ruling party’s bill extending scope, time limits for covert investigations

The Georgian Parliament on Tuesday overcame Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili’s veto, with 79 votes, on the ruling Georgian Dream party’s domestic surveillance bill, that extends the scope and time limits on covert investigative actions, surveillance and wiretapping by state authorities.

Anri Okhanashvili, the Head of Georgian Parliament's Legal Affairs Committee said the President and her representative had “failed” to submit motivated remarks on the draft law and noted there had been “a number of meetings” held on the issue, which had been attended by civil sector and the representatives of the oppositional parties.

Giorgi Mskhiladze, the President’s Parliamentary Secretary also made comments in this regard and said the adopted draft law would “significantly worsen” the standard of human rights protection and “threaten” the country’s European future.

The amendments to the Criminal Procedure Code were proposed in April, extending the maximum term of covert investigative action from six to nine months in relation to 77 types of offences, including trafficking of minors, illegal treatment of nuclear or radioactive waste, involvement of minors in pornography production or distribution, illegal distribution of psychotropic medications and more.