Georgian parliament adopts amendments on expanding investigative authorities of special investigation service

The Georgian parliament on Wednesday adopted the amendments to the law on the special investigative service, increasing its investigative authorities, in the third reading with 80 votes in favour and one against.

According to the changes, the service will pursue investigations instead of the Georgian prosecutor’s office on the violations of rights set by the European Convention on Human Rights, and its investigative scope will also be expanded in several articles, including the abuse of authority, the press office of the parliament said.

Amendments were also made to the law on personal data protection, increasing the guarantees of social protection of its employees and creating the possibility to award the employees with special titles. 

The legislative package has been prepared by the parliament’s legal affairs committee as per the 12-point conditions set by the European Union to grant the country its membership candidate status.