Irakli Kobakhidze, the head of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Wednesday dismissed local media reports on the imprisoned opposition politicians Mikheil Saakashvili, Nika Melia and Giorgi Rurua being mentioned as political prisoners in the new United States Department of State report on human rights situation in Georgia as a “total lie”.
Four Georgian-based non-governmental organisations that reviewed the implementation of the European Union-mediated April 19 agreement between the Georgian government and opposition, which put an end to six months of political tension over the country’s October 2020 parliamentary elections, say ambitious electoral reform was partly carried out in the country while pointing out that the fulfilment of judicial reforms almost failed.
Against this backdrop of political turbulence, the Georgian Dream government announced it would present an application for EU membership in 2024. Just when it was undermining core democratic norms, the party raised the stakes in its long quest to get the EU to offer a membership perspective. Most in the EU saw the timing of this move as unfortunate. The announcement seemed lacking in seriousness and did little to improve the government’s standing in Brussels. For several years Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine have been working together to push the EU to grant an “upgraded” status within the EaP. Now Georgia has broken ranks, and the lack of partners on this defiant path is likely to weaken its already slim chances of attaining a membership perspective.
EU posts bail for release of Georgian opposition leader Nika Melia
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The EU has posted a bond of 40,000 lari [approximately $12,000] for one of the leaders of the Georgian opposition, Nika Melia, to be released. The court is expected to make a decision on May 10.
“The pledge was made after political parties in Georgia reached an agreement on April 19 through the mediation of the European Council. We sincerely thank two independent organizations that agreed to provide financial support in this process: the European Endowment for Democracy, which provided funds, and the Georgian Young Lawyers Association (GYLA),” the EU said in a statement.