The Venice Commission has determined that the current structure of the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) does not provide enough independence and safeguards to effectively oversee the financing of political parties and monitor the assets and interests of high-level officials. The Commission also notes that the fact that the Prime Minister has significant control over the appointment and dismissal of the head of the ACB is a major concern.
The opinion of the Venice Commission was requested by Mr. Shalva Papuashvili, Chairman of the Parliament of Georgia, on September 22, 2023. However, the Commission’s assessment is limited to the provisions of the Law on the Fight against Corruption that were added in November 2022. This means that the Commission has not evaluated other parts of the Law, such as conflicts of interest and whistleblower protections, which have not undergone significant changes.
The Commission believes that a more comprehensive evaluation of the Law on the Fight against Corruption would have been beneficial, as different provisions of the Law are interconnected. The Commission is willing to provide an opinion on the Law as a whole if requested by the Georgian authorities.
The new provisions added to the Law in November 2022 were intended to strengthen anti-corruption efforts and address high-level corruption cases, in line with the European Commission’s recommendations for Georgia’s EU membership application. However, the Commission does not have the authority to determine whether these provisions meet the EU’s criteria. Nevertheless, the Commission considers the stated aims of the Law when assessing the structure and powers of the ACB. In this regard, the Commission concludes that bringing various anti-corruption functions under the ACB does not fully achieve the goal of addressing high-level corruption.
The Venice Commission emphasizes the importance of independence and autonomy for effective anti-corruption measures. This includes legal and institutional arrangements to prevent political or other forms of influence. However, the current setup of the ACB does not meet these requirements.
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