The News in Brief
Thursday, April 4, 2024
Prepared by Messenger Staff
President Salome Zourabichvili Condemns Reintroduction of 'Foreign Agents' Bill by Georgian Dream
President of Georgia Salome Zourabichvili condemned the reintroduction of the 'Foreign Agents' bill by Georgian Dream.
Zourabichvili asserted that the ruling party is actively undermining Georgia's progress towards the European Union. The president suggested that the solution lies in responding during the elections.
"The most fortunate thing is that you were able to (I apologize to Mr. Papuashvili for using this term, but) initiate the Russian law during the week from March 31 to April 9, a period which, for the recent history of Georgia, is loaded with national spirit.
But you don't have this, neither national nor European spirit. Today, these two concepts - national and European - are intertwined; it is impossible to separate them, and Georgian society understands this very well. You don't want to see, you don't want to hear that Georgian society is united in this direction - to strengthen independence, Russia will never return here," Zourabichvili said.
NGOs Condemn Abolition of Gender Quota, Citing Constitutional Rights and European Integration
Non-governmental organizations have issued a statement highlighting that the abolition of the mandatory gender quota contradicts the will of the people as reflected in the Constitution of Georgia. They argue that this decision violates women's rights and poses obstacles to the country's process of European integration. The statement was signed by 80 organizations.
NGOs wrote that achieving gender balance in the Parliament of Georgia directly reflects the will of the country's population and is considered one of the primary components of representative democracy.
"According to research, the majority of voters in Georgia support the equal representation of women and men in parliament (50-50), including the use of a mandatory gender quota (NDI, 2023), and believe that this will have a positive impact on the country's development (UNDP, UNFPA, 2020)," the statement reads.
The statement highlighted that gender equality was among the 12 conditions set by the European Commission for Georgia's path toward a European perspective.
"One of the 12 conditions defined by the European Commission for Georgia was gender equality. Instead of progress (one of the three implemented recommendations was related to the issues of gender equality and women's participation in politics), the adoption of the bill to cancel the mandatory gender quota is a clear regression and a step back," the statement said.
President Salome Zourabichvili Condemns Reintroduction of 'Foreign Agents' Bill by Georgian Dream
Zourabichvili asserted that the ruling party is actively undermining Georgia's progress towards the European Union. The president suggested that the solution lies in responding during the elections.
"The most fortunate thing is that you were able to (I apologize to Mr. Papuashvili for using this term, but) initiate the Russian law during the week from March 31 to April 9, a period which, for the recent history of Georgia, is loaded with national spirit.
But you don't have this, neither national nor European spirit. Today, these two concepts - national and European - are intertwined; it is impossible to separate them, and Georgian society understands this very well. You don't want to see, you don't want to hear that Georgian society is united in this direction - to strengthen independence, Russia will never return here," Zourabichvili said.
NGOs Condemn Abolition of Gender Quota, Citing Constitutional Rights and European Integration
NGOs wrote that achieving gender balance in the Parliament of Georgia directly reflects the will of the country's population and is considered one of the primary components of representative democracy.
"According to research, the majority of voters in Georgia support the equal representation of women and men in parliament (50-50), including the use of a mandatory gender quota (NDI, 2023), and believe that this will have a positive impact on the country's development (UNDP, UNFPA, 2020)," the statement reads.
The statement highlighted that gender equality was among the 12 conditions set by the European Commission for Georgia's path toward a European perspective.
"One of the 12 conditions defined by the European Commission for Georgia was gender equality. Instead of progress (one of the three implemented recommendations was related to the issues of gender equality and women's participation in politics), the adoption of the bill to cancel the mandatory gender quota is a clear regression and a step back," the statement said.