Georgia, new EU warning: “Further departure from democracy and Europe”

Brussels – European Union and Georgia are increasingly distant and increasingly at loggerheads. “We are witnessing further steps of Georgian authorities moving away from democratic standards” and consequently from the EU, is the denunciation of the EU’s High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, in response to the latest developments in the Caucasian country whose accession process has been frozen precisely because of the deteriorating situation.

“The hasty adoption of amendments to the Code on Administrative Offenses, the Criminal Code, and the Law on Assemblies and Demonstrations will have far-reaching effects on Georgian society,” Kallas further laments. These legislative interventions “will significantly undermine the rights to freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, and freedom of the media.” Hence the official request to the government in Tblisi to “suspend these measures, to refrain from further tension, and to await the opinion of the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the OSCE (ODIHR).” 

The High Representative reiterates once again: by doing so, Georgia is gambling its chances of EU membership. “These developments mark a serious setback for Georgia’s democratic development and do not live up to the expectations of an EU candidate country.” continued Kallas, who also urged to “release all journalists, activists, and political detainees who have been unjustly detained. These also include Mzia Amaglobeli, considered in Brussels “another example of the way the authorities treat journalists and anyone who speaks freely.” From the EU a new call also for “a dialogue with all political forces and representatives of civil society.” 

European Union pressure on Georgia will continue. The European Parliament is scheduled (Thursday, Feb. 13) to vote on a resolution condemning the crackdown on anti-government demonstrations and voices critical of the current Georgian leadership. A non-binding text that nevertheless maintains distance and pressure on a partner who is no longer there.