Michael O’Flaherty, the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, called on the Georgian authorities to make progress in ensuring accountability for the disproportionate use of force by law enforcement against protesters and to “review, repeal or substantially amend” controversial legislation concerning freedom of assembly, association and expression, in a June 19 memorandum following his April visit to the country.
Accountability of Law Enforcement Officers
While welcoming as a “positive step” a legislative proposal requiring all law enforcement officers to wear visible identification numbers, O’Flaherty called for its “prompt adoption” and “effective implementation.”
Taking note of the first arrests and criminal charges brought against five officers accused of using disproportionate force against protesters and journalists in 2024 and early 2025, the Commissioner nevertheless expressed concern about the “substantial delays” and the “lack of tangible progress” in ensuring accountability, noting that the Public Defender of Georgia received reports of ill-treatment from 360 individuals in almost one year, “including reports of torture and alleged threats of sexual violence against women protesters.”
The Commissioner recommended that the Georgian authorities ensure that investigations are “thorough, prompt and genuinely independent, addressing not only individual perpetrators but also issues of command responsibility,” and “extend the scope” of the probes to include “all credible allegations of ill-treatment” during protests from 2023 to 2025. He also called on the authorities to ensure a “thorough, independent and transparent inquiry” into the use of water cannons containing chemical substances. He also reiterated the importance of implementing European Court of Human Rights judgments concerning effective and independent investigations into allegations of ill-treatment and the policing of demonstrations.
“Without further delay, the authorities should ensure a thorough, independent and transparent inquiry into the reported use of water cannons containing chemical substances against protesters, with the full participation of victims and civil society, and public disclosure of the findings,” O’Flaherty said, as quoted in an official press release.
Increasing Restrictions on Democratic Freedoms
The Commissioner regretted that his past recommendations to the Georgian authorities to “review and amend” legislation concerning freedom of assembly adopted since October 2023 “have not been implemented,” but have instead been tightened through “additional restrictions” introduced in October and December 2025.
The October-December changes included, among others, the extension of assembly restrictions to pedestrian areas, mandatory prior notification of assemblies to the police, expanded administrative sanctions, and the introduction of criminal liability for repeated protest-related offenses.
“The Commissioner reiterates that deprivation of liberty in the context of assemblies should remain a measure of last resort,” the memorandum said, adding, “He notes that extending lengthy administrative detention to first-time protest-related offences raises serious questions of necessity and proportionality under international human rights standards.” He further expressed concern over the introduction of criminal liability for repeated protest-related offences.
“These amendments significantly restrict the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and appear incompatible with the principles of necessity and proportionality enshrined in the European Convention on Human Rights,” O’Flaherty added, recommending that the authorities “review, repeal or substantially amend” the changes.
The Commissioner also called for the repeal of legislation targeting civil society and media organizations, including the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), amendments to the Law on Grants, and Law on Broadcasting, noting, “The authorities should also halt the administrative and criminal proceedings against dozens of CSOs for receiving foreign funding or for alleged involvement in aggravated sabotage, and immediately lift the freeze on their bank accounts.”
“Refrain from any measures that arbitrarily restrict democratic freedoms, political pluralism and participation in public life.”
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