NGO: “The Georgian government shows the EU it doesn’t care about visa-free travel”
Georgian NGOs’ joint statement
More than 60 NGOs in Georgia have expressed solidarity with organisations whose bank accounts were frozen by court order. In a joint statement, they said such actions once again show the EU that the government has no interest in keeping the visa-free regime.
The EU has given the Georgian authorities until 31 August to ease their stance towards civil society, warning that otherwise visa-free travel for Georgian citizens could be revoked.
The NGOs also accused the government of seeking the “complete destruction of dissenting and pro-European organisations, civic groups and communities in Georgia.”
“Such punitive measures against NGOs show that the authorities are intent on the complete destruction of dissenting and pro-European organisations and civic groups in Georgia.
All this is happening at a time when the ruling Georgian Dream party has been given a clear deadline to demonstrate to the EU whether it intends to keep the visa-free regime for the Georgian people.
With its actions, the government once again signals to the EU that maintaining visa-free travel for Georgia is not in its interests.
Criminalising the work of NGOs that defend the rights and interests of Georgian citizens makes clear that one of Georgian Dream’s goals is to leave people unprotected against state reprisals. The suspension of these organisations’ activities means thousands are left without free legal aid and other vital services.
‘NGOs and media stand with our colleagues, united in our common aspiration for a free, fair and democratic Georgia,’ the statement said.”
On the eve of the ruling, Tbilisi City Court granted a request from the prosecutor’s office to freeze the bank accounts of several non-governmental organisations.
The case is linked to a probe into what prosecutors describe as “sabotage, attempted sabotage under aggravating circumstances, aiding a foreign organisation or one under foreign control in hostile activities, and raising funds for actions directed against Georgia’s constitutional order and national security.”
Prosecutors claim the NGOs “equipped” participants of protest rallies and encouraged them to violence.
Georgian NGOs’ joint statement
