Georgian Prime Minister Calls for Reversal of Anti-Corruption Bureau's Decision on Transparency International
By Liza Mchedlidze
Wednesday, October 2, 2024
On October 1, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze urged the Anti-Corruption Bureau to reverse its decision to classify Transparency International (TI) Georgia as an organization with "declared election objectives." This request followed the watchdog's announcement that it would no longer be able to observe the upcoming elections under its current status.
The Prime Minister warned that assigning such a designation to civil society organizations (CSOs) could invite "external manipulation." He also stated that TI Georgia's "radical and polarizing political agenda" had been apparent for some time, asserting that the public had already drawn its own conclusions about the group's electoral motives.
Kobakhidze defended the Anti-Corruption Bureau's ruling as "legally correct" and in line with the Law on Citizens' Political Association. However, he suggested that, in the interest of preventing foreign interference in the electoral process, the Bureau should reconsider its decision for TI Georgia and similar organizations. Although TI Georgia was the only organization to contest the Bureau's ruling, the Prime Minister called for discretion to be used in dealing with other CSOs as well.
The Prime Minister also accused TI Georgia of past errors, such as miscalculating votes in the 2020 elections and calling for the government's resignation in 2022. Despite these claims, he stressed that the organization's current status was not necessary for the public to be cautious of its actions.
Kobakhidze called on the Anti-Corruption Bureau to refrain from taking similar actions against other organizations ahead of the October 26 parliamentary elections, adding that TI Georgia's activities would not have a practical impact on the outcome due to its damaged reputation.
