U.S. The Voice of America (VoA), Georgian Service reported that Senators Jeanne Shaheen(D-NH), a senior U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee member (SFRC) and chair of the Europe and Regional Security Cooperation Subcommittee and Jim Risch (R-ID), ranking member of SFRC released a joint statement as retaliation to the Georgian elections over the weekend. The statement calls for Georgian authorities respect the right of peaceful protest of Georgians and states that if additional changes are needed to the bipartisan legislation called the Georgian People’s Act to hold accountable those responsible of fraud and manipulation of election process.
The Senators note, despite their recent concerns about democratic backslidings in Georgia, that they had hoped to witness a commitment from the Georgian Government to run an election process that was fair and free to reflect the wishes of Georgians. The letter states that “in reality, we have seen something different this weekend in the parliamentary elections.”
The statement reads, “Reports shared by the OSCE/ODHIR and the International Republican Institute, National Democratic Institute and ISFED show numerous violations that severely compromised standards for democratic elections.” They also note that they are alarmed “by dozens of reports on election day interference, such as violence, voter intimidation, and ballot stuffing that could have further harmed the integrity of yesterday’s election results.”
The senators wrote: “We call on Department of State to investigate immediately any reports of fraud or external interference in order to determine if any actions have seriously affected the outcome of the election.” They added that “those responsible should be held to account.”
The senators note that “this is a precarious time for Georgia” and that the ruling Georgian Dream Party “must realize that its actions can have immediate consequences on their economic and security agenda.”
The Senators Risch & Shaheen state that Russia “has undoubtedly benefited from sowing division & disinformation” and they also state “We recognize the Georgian people’s right to peacefully protest if so desired and we call on the Georgian authorities to uphold this important democratic right.”
The senators state that if necessary, they will make additional amendments to their bipartisan legislation, Georgian People’s Act to ensure that those who are responsible for fraud or manipulation of the electoral process are held accountable. The US Senate is committed to supporting democratic aspirations in Georgia.
Also Read:
* 28/10/2024: International Reactions on the Results of the Georgian Parliamentary Elections
* 28/10/2024: Georgian Opposition and Observers Collect Proof to Reveal Alleged Vote Fraud
* 28/10/2024 – Observer Mission Discusses Main Scheme of Large-Scale Fraud and Requests Annulment of Results at 189 Polling Stations
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