Georgian Parliament adopts draft amendments to Public Defender election regulations at second reading, without support of UNM, Strategy Aghmashenebeli, Lelo parties
Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili thanked the representatives of the parliamentary opposition who had voted for the adoption of the bill, which included MPs from the parties of For Georgia, Citizens and Girchi, as well as independent MPs. Photo: Parliament of Georgia.
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Georgian Parliament on Thursday adopted the draft amendments to the regulations on the procedure of electing a new Public Defender with 80 votes at the second reading of the bill.
The draft amendments, prepared by the ruling Georgian Dream party, were not supported at the second reading by several opposition parties, including United National Movement, Strategy Agmashenebeli and Lelo, unlike the first reading.
Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili thanked the representatives of the parliamentary opposition who had voted for the adoption of the bill, which included MPs from the parties of For Georgia, Citizens and Girchi, as well as independent MPs.
The ruling Georgian Dream party is ready to implement the rule for electing a Prosecutor General with a 3/5 quorum, as agreed by the Georgian political groups last year, within the framework of the EU-mediated agreement, proposed by European Council President Charles Michel, said Irakli Kobakhidze, the Chairman of the ruling party on Thursday at a briefing.
Mamuka Mdinaradze, the Executive Secretary of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Wednesday, announced that the party would not be presenting a candidate for the position of Public Defender, and the nomination of a candidate would be “completely entrusted” to the opposition and civil sector.
Mamuka Mdinaradze, the Executive Secretary of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Tuesday said it was a “paradox” that a Commonwealth of Independent States member state enjoyed the European Union membership candidacy, while Georgia, which he said was “advanced in terms of reforms and democracy”, had yet to receive the status.
Mamuka Mdinaradze, the Executive Secretary of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Tuesday said domestic opposition parties were “trying their best to sabotage” the process of the implementation of the European Union conditions for granting the country the membership candidate status.
Irakli Kadagishvili, the chair of the rules and procedural issues committee of the parliament of Georgia, on Monday said the parliamentary majority and the opposition would find a “worthy” new candidate for the position of the public defender who is “not a representative of a certain political team or course”.
The Georgian parliament on Thursday adopted an initiative for electing the country’s next public defender by an open ballot.
Georgian public defender Nino Lomjaria on Friday said 161 cases of discrimination had been identified by her office across the country in 2021, as she presented the annual report on the state of human rights protection at a plenary session of the parliament.
Mamuka Mdinaradze, the executive secretary of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Monday said the party would be "consensus-oriented" on the issue of the election of a new public defender, reflecting one of the conditions of the European Union for granting the country the membership candidate status.
Ana Abashidze, the managing director of Partnership for Human Rights organisation and civil society organisations’ nominee for the position of public defender, on Thursday said she had “positive expectations” and praised the “unprecedented engagement and transparency” in the selection process of the new ombudsperson, a part of the European Union’s conditions to grant Georgia the membership candidate status.