The United Kingdom has expressed deep concern over reports that Georgia’s Prosecutor General’s Office has frozen the accounts of seven non-governmental organizations as part of an investigation into alleged sabotage. The British Embassy in Tbilisi released a statement stressing that the move appears politically motivated and aimed at silencing independent voices, rather than addressing unlawful activity.
Based on the statement, the targeted NGOs are engaged in crucial public service activities, including promoting free and fair elections, defending freedom of information, providing legal aid to citizens, and supporting women, children, people with disabilities, and survivors of domestic violence. “Closing them down will harm the Georgian people and further erode democratic protections and accountability in Georgia,” the Embassy warned.
The UK also drew attention to a recent opinion by the Council of Europe’s Expert Council on NGO Law, which concluded that the implementation of Georgia’s new legislation would cause “grave and unjustified damage to civil society” and contradict the commitments Georgia has undertaken as a Council of Europe member state.
“We call on the Georgian authorities to repeal repressive legislation, end its attacks on civil society, and engage in a national dialogue with all stakeholders to find a way out of the current crisis,” the Embassy’s statement concluded.
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