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our chapter, Transparency International Georgia , 36 percent of citizens believe that public officials abuse their power for personal gain. This is up from only 12 per cent in 2013. Progress in anti-corruption will continue to stall and reverse if the Georgian government does not take immediate steps to ensure the independence of institutions, including the judiciary, and support civil society, which enhances political engagement and public oversight.”
2.4 NGOs in Georgia criticise ruling coalition’s judicial reforms
The Coalition for An Independent and Transparent Judiciary, uniting 40 civil society organisations in Georgia, announced at a press conference on January 24 that it would quit the parliamentary working group on judicial reform, Civil.ge informed .
Four large Tbilisi-based international business associations sent an open letter to parliamentary chairman Irakli Kobakhidze and acting chairman of the legal issues committee Davit Matikashvili requesting the legislature to “refocus attention on broader judicial reform”.
They called upon the parliament “to quickly amend” the Organic Law on the Common Courts in order “to develop specific qualification requirements for Supreme Court Judicial nominees and to define the fair, transparent and meritocratic rules for their nomination and appointment”.
“The selection of Supreme Court judicial nominees, without a fair, transparent and predictable process reinforces the extremely negative perception of the Georgian judiciary and court system... This is not only bad for the country, but will undoubtedly have a negative impact on Georgia’s international reputation, the business environment and the country’s ability to attract investment,” the letter reads.
Ten candidates for Supreme Court judge, the appointment of whom was postponed by the parliament till its spring session, released a joint statement on January 21, calling on MPs not to deliberate on their appointment to avoid “unhealthy speculations”.
A dispute over the Supreme Court nominations in the governing Georgian Dream – Democratic Georgia party started in late December when the High Council of Justice submitted a 10-member list of nominees to the parliament, triggering the resignation of Eka Beselia, chairwoman of the judiciary committee.
2.5 Polls & Sociology
Jobs, poverty top Georgians’ agenda
Finding a job is ranked by 51% of Georgians as among their top three issues, followed by poverty (32%) and rising prices (28%), with all three major concerns demonstrating households’ poor economic conditions, according to a US National Democratic Institute (NDI) poll carried out in December.
Support for Georgia taking Nato and EU membership remains robust, but the issue of joining the bloc is seen as rather unimportant, the survey also
7 GEORGIA Country Report February 2019 www.intellinews.com