"Georgian Dream" is Attempting to Remove Public’s Ability to Monitor the Actions of the Authorities

25.08.2022

The aggressive campaign of the "Georgian Dream" against local non-governmental organizations is fast approaching an alarming level. The Georgian Dream's attack on civil organizations aims to eliminate public oversight over the activities of the government, which is another clear manifestation of authoritarianism and points to its irreversible nature.  

The "Georgian Dream" blocked the participation of the International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy (ISFED) in the working group created by the same party supposedly to fulfill the 12  prerequisite points defined for Georgia to receive the EU membership candidate status. This decision forced other NGOs to suspend their participation in the group. This was followed by the governing party’s attack on the civil sector in Georgia.

The attack by the chairperson of the Georgian Dream, Irakli Kobakhidze, on the competence and integrity of non-governmental organizations, their classification into different groups, and the creation of a blacklist of non-governmental organizations unacceptable to the government because of the position taken on European integration - which is the most important for the country's national interests - is nothing but an attempt by the Georgian Dream to neutralize public control over the activities of the government and to facilitate their agenda. 

The ruling party attacks those individuals and organizations that actively monitor the government's activities, criticize their harmful policies, call on the authorities to review their agenda, and start taking concrete steps towards developing Georgia and leading it towards European integration. 

We believe that the "Georgian Dream" is aware of the outcomes of their actions, however, their rhetoric and steps taken, it is deliberately trying to break all the levers that Georgia needs for its democratic development. Such decisions and statements are the reason the future of democratic development of Georgia gets dire with every new day, both in the eyes of the national and the international community. This regress is fully the responsibility of the "Georgian Dream".


Georgian Democratic Initiative (GDI)
Georgian Court Watch 
Transparency International - Georgia (TI) 
Open Society Foundation of Georgia (OSGF) 
Guardians of Democracy 
Media Development Fund 
Economic Policy Research Center (EPRC) 
European-Georgia Institute 
Rondeli Foundation, Georgian Foundation for Strategic and International Studies 
Georgian Institute of Politics (GIP) 
Atlantic Council of Georgia 
Georgian Reforms Association (GRASS) 
Tolerance and Diversity Institute (TDI) 
Rights Georgia 
Women for a Common Future (WECF) – Georgia 
Sapari 
Regional Network of Civil Activists 
The Caucasus Institute for Peace, Democracy, and Development (CIPDD)