The Constitutional Court of Georgia Starts Considering Lawsuits Against the Law on Foreign Agents: Details
Kyiv • UNN
The Constitutional Court of Georgia has started considering lawsuits against the law on foreign agents filed by the president, NGOs, the opposition and the media. The plaintiffs believe that the law contradicts the Constitution and hinders the activities of NGOs and the media.
The Constitutional Court (CC) of Georgia has begun considering lawsuits against the law on foreign agents, UNN reports with reference to Novosti Georgia.
The appeals were consolidated into one proceeding:
President of Georgia Salome Zurabishvili,
more than a hundred non-governmental organizations,
38 opposition members of the Georgian parliament,
two media organizations specializing in investigative journalism.
At the same time, on August 29, the Constitutional Court received a fifth lawsuit against the law on foreign agents. It was filed by the Georgian Law Firms Association. The lawsuit has not yet been registered, so it cannot be combined with the others. The court decided to discuss it further later, but without oral hearings.
All the plaintiffs believe that the law contradicts various provisions of the Constitution of Georgia, "causes stigmatization of NGOs and media, hinders their activities" and may eventually lead to their liquidation.
And the president's address concerns the article on Georgia's integration into the EU and NATO. It appeared in the country's basic law several years ago. So far, the court has never had to discuss its implementation.
The plaintiffs also request that the law be suspended until a final decision is made.
"Today we will hold a meeting to discuss the controversial norms regarding the rights protected by the constitution, and we will also discuss the proposals that the parties have put forward at this stage," said Constitutional Court Judge Giorgi Tevdorashvili in a comment to reporters before the meeting.
The case is being considered by the plenum of the Constitutional Court of Georgia. One of the nine members of the panel is absent for health reasons.
The President is represented at the meeting by, among others, politician Eka Beselia and former Deputy Ombudsman Giorgi Burjanadze. The opposition's arguments will be presented by MPs Anna Natvlishvili and Tamar Kordzaya. Former Constitutional Court judges Ketevan Iremadze and Giorgi Davituli will represent the NGOs' case, while the media organizations will be represented by Gela Mtisambebi, editor of the Mtisambebi.ge website.
The defendant in the case is the Parliament of Georgia. According to the Pirveli TV company, the Georgian Dream's position was to be defended by MPs Henri Okhanashvili (head of the Legal Committee) and Tengiz Sharmanashvili. They are co-authors of the controversial law. The deputies did not show up at today's meeting. The lawyers of the parliamentary apparatus explained that they would appear if necessary.
It is also known that the Office of the Public Defender of Georgia will present its arguments as a "friend of the court". The Ombudsman believes that the law should not be in force in its current form and should at least be amended to take into account the recommendations of international partners.
The media call the process historic.
"There has never been an issue of such importance as the one to be discussed today in the practice of the Constitutional Court. Today, the Constitutional Court will decide whether we will be included in the list of non-democratic states, such as Russia, Belarus, Bolivia, Ecuador, Cuba, Namibia, Venezuela, Cambodia, Uganda, China, and India. If the Constitutional Court does not suspend this law, we will be on the list of such countries. I expect that the judges of the Constitutional Court will not give up their homeland to turn us into one of the failed and isolated countries. We have irrefutable evidence that this law contradicts EU law," Kordzaya told reporters before the meeting.
Meanwhile, the Georgian Ministry of Justice has already launched a registration procedure for NGOs and media with foreign grants to register with the register of organizations that express the interests of a foreign power. The registration application stage will last until the end of August, after which those who refrain will be fined 25,000 GEL.
The law provides for the creation of a special register and declares non-governmental and media organizations that receive foreign grants based on the fact of funding alone to be conductors of foreign interests. It officially came into force on August 1.
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili filed the lawsuit on July 15. In her opinion, the law, in particular, contradicts Article 78 of the Georgian Constitution, according to which all branches of government must do everything possible within their competencies to integrate the country into the EU and NATO.
The European Union has repeatedly warned that the draft law does not meet the recommendations for further progress in the EU. Further developments led to Brussels announcing the suspension of Georgia's integration. At the same time, the United States announced a complete review of relations with Georgia.
