Michael O'Flaherty, Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, has expressed his concern about proposed amendments to seven Georgian laws which, if adopted, would be incompatible with freedom of association.
In a press release published on Monday 2 February, he called for these amendments to be rejected by Parliament.
These concern the legal definition of the term “grant”; the extension of the obligation to obtain prior government approval for foreign grants to entities based abroad that carry out activities related to Georgia and to the local offices of foreign NGOs; and derogations from human rights standards.
“A vibrant civil society is a cornerstone of any democratic society. I call upon Georgian authorities to respect their obligations under the ECHR and other human rights instruments. They should guarantee the right to freedom of association and end all forms of harassment and intimidation directed at human rights defenders and civil society actors”, said Commissioner O'Flaherty.
Link to the Declaration: https://aeur.eu/f/kjj (Original version in French by Véronique Leblanc)