U.S. Senators Respond to Georgian Anti-Corruption Bureau's Actions Against NGOs
By Liza Mchedlidze
Thursday, September 26, 2024
On September 24, Georgia's Anti-Corruption Bureau declared Transparency International Georgia and Vote for Europe, as well as their leaders, as entities with "electoral objectives." This decision has drawn criticism from four prominent members of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
U.S. Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho) and Ben Cardin (D-Md.), ranking member and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, alongside Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) and Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), chair and ranking member of the Europe and Regional Security Cooperation Subcommittee, released a joint statement addressing their concerns.
"We are concerned by Georgia's Anti-Corruption Bureau's decision to label Transparency International Georgia and Vote for Europe as organizations 'with a declared electoral goal.' These NGOs are active in preparing monitoring missions for the upcoming Georgian elections but are not part of the electoral contest. They support democracy regardless of whom people vote for," the statement read.
The senators also highlighted the situation of Eka Gigauri, Director of Transparency International Georgia, who they believe is being targeted for her testimony during the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on "Anti-NGO Laws and Other Tools of Democratic Repression" held on September 12. The statement strongly condemned the actions taken against her, saying, "It is unconscionable that Transparency International Georgia Director Eka Gigauri is being punished for her recent testimony. The announcement about her yesterday proves that autocratic governments are misusing laws to punish independent voices."
