Georgian Parliament elects opposition MP as new Public Defender
Ioseliani was nominated by his party and gained the support of 96 lawmakers at today’s voting in the legislative body. The approval required at least 90 votes. Photo: Georgian Parliament
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The Georgian Parliament on Tuesday supported the candidacy of Levan Ioseliani, an opposition MP from the Citizens party, for the position of the Public Defender of Georgia, in a move that concluded a delayed period of candidate selection and vote for the position.
Ioseliani was nominated by his party and gained the support of 96 lawmakers at today’s voting in the legislative body. The approval required at least 90 votes.
Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili congratulated Ioseliani on the election, which sees the new Public Defender replace Nino Lomjaria in the position for the next six years. The position had become vacant after Lomjaria’s term expired in December.
The voting results came after Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili told the media earlier today Ioseliani was a “worthy” nominee for the new ombudsperson.
Selection of an “unbiased” Public Defender was one of the 12 conditions outlined by the European Union for granting Georgia its membership candidate status.
The selection process for the voting saw 19 candidates picked in initial nominations, however parties could not agree on a common candidate, with all 19 candidates failing to receive necessary support in plenary sessions of the lawmaking body.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili on Tuesday praised Levan Ioseliani, an opposition MP from the Citizens party, as a “worthy” nominee to become the country’s new Public Defender.
The Citizens opposition party will nominate one of its leaders Levan Ioseliani for the position of the new Public Defender of Georgia, the party revealed on Tuesday.
Irakli Kobakhidze, the Chair of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Friday said the ruling team was ready to “once again” concede the task of selecting candidates for the country’s new Public Defender to the domestic opposition.
Mikheil Sarjveladze, the Chair of the Georgian Parliament's Committee on Human Rights, on Saturday said the domestic opposition was “fully responsible” for the failure of the Public Defender election.
Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Thursday said “many people” in the domestic opposition had been “ready for a consensus” in agreeing on a candidate for the next Public Defender, but added the process had failed in the Parliament due to an “ultimatum from NGOs”, and called the development a “sad reality”.
Levan Ioseliani, the newly appointed Public Defender of Georgia, on Sunday visited the imprisoned former President Mikheil Saakashvili and 13 other inmates currently undergoing treatment at the Vivamedi civilian clinic in Tbilisi.
The Georgian Public Defender’s Office on Tuesday said it had studied 153 alleged cases of discrimination last year, with the highest number related to alleged discrimination on the basis of opinion.
Grigol Liluashvili, the head of the Georgian State Security Service, and Levan Ioseliani, the country’s newly elected Public Defender, on Thursday discussed cooperation between their offices.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili and the country’s Public Defender Levan Ioseliani on Friday discussed the Government’s work for human rights protection in a meeting at the Government office.
Levan Ioseliani, the Public Defender of Georgia and Tamar Gvaramadze, the Deputy Public Defender, on Thursday featured in a meeting organised by the European Network of National Human Rights Institutions to enhance promotion and protection of human rights.
Georgian Public Defender Levan Ioseliani discussed human rights and his country’s efforts to obtain the European Union membership candidate status later this year at meetings with United States officials during his first official visit to the country in the position, his office said on Tuesday.
The Tolerance Centre of the Georgian Public Defender’s Office on Thursday marked the annual International Day for Tolerance, declared by the UNESCO to raise public awareness of the dangers of intolerance.
Levan Ioseliani, the Public Defender of Georgia, has applied to the National Bureau of Enforcement with a request to restrict evictions of residents who have lost their only housing during the winter.