Georgia Reverses Ban on Transparency International's Election Monitoring After PM's Intervention

Oct 1, 2024, 07:01 AM

The Georgian Dream government has been accused of disrupting the election observation process by enforcing the Russian Foreign Agents law through mechanisms like the Anti-Corruption Bureau and the courts, which equated observer organizations such as Transparency International Georgia and its executive director Eka Gigauri to entities with declared electoral aims. After the court upheld the Bureau's decision, Transparency International Georgia announced it would not be able to monitor the upcoming parliamentary elections under its own name. In response to mounting criticism, Prime Minister Kobakhidze called on the Anti-Corruption Bureau to revoke its decision and to refrain from such practices before the elections "to prevent external meddling." The authorities have since backed down, withdrawing the status of Transparency International Georgia as an organization with declared electoral aims, allowing it to observe the elections.