Emmanuel Macron, Olaf Scholz and Donald Tusk released a joint declaration expressing their concerns over the political climate in Georgia. They said they could not support Georgia’s opening of European Union accession negotiations unless it made necessary reforms. They also called for swift, transparent investigations into election-related irregularities.
On November 6, European lawmakers who call themselves “Friends of Georgia”, issued a statement calling for an international investigation commission to investigate irregularities during the Georgian elections, and for sanctions to imposed on BidzinaIvanishvili as well as officials and political leaders accountable for the country’s democratic downslide.
As part of its sanctions against Russia, the United Kingdom sanctioned Anatoly Bibiblov, the former de facto president of the occupied Tskhinvali Region. Bibilov’s association with private mercenary organizations with ties to Kremlin was sanctioned. The UK sanctions include a travel ban, an asset freeze and sanctions on trust service providers.
During the Foreign Affairs Committee of the European Parliament confirmation hearing, Marta Kos, Slovenian candidate and Commissioner-designate addressed, among other issues, the prospects of Georgia’s EU integration against the background of the country’s democratic decline. “Don’t lose hope,” she told the Georgians, and called on the Georgian government to repeal anti-LGBT and foreign agent laws.
Georgian officials, including the Prime Minister and President, have reacted to Donald Trump’s landslide victory in the U.S. Presidential elections by congratulating him on his decisive win. In her congratulatory message on X, President Salome Zurabishvili emphasized Euro-Atlantic Integration and the bolstering regional security. PM Kobakhidze emphasized peace and the “restart of U.S.Georgia Relations.”
According to the International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy, Judge Vladimer Khuchua, of the Tetritskaro Municipality, who confirmed the violation of the secrecy in the ballot during the October 26 elections invalidating the results at 30 polling stations has been the target of a discrediting effort by media affiliated with Georgian Dream, anonymous social media pages and individuals.
The Tbilisi Court of Appeals, after an extraordinarily long deliberation of almost 24 hours, rejected appeals from the watchdog Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association and the local observer My Vote regarding the alleged violation of ballot secrecy. The Court upheld, although disputed, the official results of the October 26, elections.
The International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy published a statement about a worrying trend that the watchdog identified in its analysis of data from the Central Election Commission on voter activity by gender. The difference between the number of registered male and female voters, and the proportion of voters who actually went to the voting stations, is what concerns the International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy (ISFED).
According to media sources, the civic movement For Freedom was fined 3000 GEL (1100USD) for hanging on the wall of their office building a banner that read “Russian Dream Stole Elections.” Two days earlier, the members of this observer movement had been individually fined 1500 GEL 550 USD for this banner.
A journalistic investigation conducted by TV Pirveli, a TV station that leans towards the opposition, revealed alleged methods of vote-rigging. These included alleged cases of voter pressure and intimidation, as well as alleged cases of voter buying. You can read about the main findings from the journalistic investigation that was broadcast on TV a week or so after the crucial election.
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