PACE president in Georgia: stop playing, put EU-mediated agreement into practice
PACE President Rik Daems arrived in Georgia on an official visit earlier today. Photo:parliament of Georgia press office.
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President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) Rik Daems has urged Georgian political parties to practically implement the April 19 EU-mediated agreement which includes large-scale reforms including in the electoral and judiciary fields.
Daems, who has met with the Georgian opposition and MPs earlier today, said that the EU-mediated agreement, which solved a six-month political crisis in Georgia, should be ‘fully implemented without further delay.’
He said that the fulfilment of the agreement will push Georgia towards ‘full European integration’.
Daems said that he has ‘never heard’ of municipal elections and ‘something like a referendum’ being conducted simultaneously as is planned in Georgia for the October 2 municipal elections.
Per the EU-mediated agreement if the ruling Georgian Dream party receives less than 43 per cent of total votes in the municipal elections, a repeat parliamentary elections must be held in the country, as the opposition has demanded this since the 2020 parliamentary elections.
Warmly welcomed Rik Daems, @PACE_President, at @GeoParliament to discuss parliamentary business, democratic consolidation, upcoming elections & other developments in the country. I am grateful to Mr. Daems for progressing the Georgian-PACE ties under his presidency! ???????? pic.twitter.com/mrvBtvuBsK
— Kakha Kuchava (@kkuchava) July 27, 2021
Daems said that ‘it is interesting but I have no plans to get involved.’
He also said that the recommendations of the Council of Europe’s Venice Commission ‘are always important when you carry out reforms.’
Georgian Parliament Speaker Kakha Kuchava invited CoE observers to monitor municipal elections in Georgia.
The EU-mediated agreement was proposed by the European Council President Charles Michel to help the Georgian political parties resolve a political crisis which began after the 2020 parliamentary elections.
Following the elections Georgian opposition parties refused to take up their seats in parliament because they said the elections were ‘fabricated’ by the ruling party.
The EU-mediated agreement was signed by a majority of Georgian political parties which won seats in parliament.
The opposition United National Movement, European Georgia and the Labour parties have not signed the agreement so far.