President Zourabichvili Vetoes Election Code Amendments
By Liza Mchedlidze
Friday, June 14, 2024
President of Georgia, Salome Zourabichvili, vetoed the amendments to the Election Code. She stated that the changes in the code create the possibility for the ruling party to make unilateral decisions.
"The quorum of 2/3 necessary for making decisions of the CEC is reduced to a majority of the full composition. With this change, the need for consensus between the parties to make decisions in the CEC is eliminated, giving the ruling party the opportunity to make decisions practically on a single-party basis," the president's statement said.
The President also signed a package of amendments to the "Anti-Corruption Law". However, Zourabichvili believes that these changes are superficial and fragmented, failing to meet the European Commission's requirements-one of the nine conditions for joining the European Union and opening negotiations. These requirements include further enhancing the effectiveness of the anti-corruption bureau and strengthening its institutional independence and impartiality.
According to Zourabichvili, the reform to genuinely increase the independence of the Anti-Corruption Bureau is detailed in the Georgian Charter she developed. Her proposed reform includes granting investigative powers to the bureau and having its head elected by the parliament.
"Currently, the head of the bureau is appointed by the Prime Minister, and the bureau is empowered to carry out several measures of special administrative proceedings in relation to election subjects, including the questioning of a natural person and questioning before a magistrate judge.
Requesting personal information, including special categories of personal data, requires even more justification to ensure that the law is not used selectively and the bureau does not become a punitive tool against parties in the hands of the government," the statement reads.
