The Venice Commission, the Council of Europe’s expert body on constitutional affairs, will adopt an opinion on the autonomous status of Adjara within Georgia in the course of its plenary session on June 18 -19.
The request for the opinion was submitted by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in May.
This issue also was scheduled to be discussed by the Georgian Parliament on June 18. However, the legislators decided to postpone the discussion.
“We intend to take into account the remarks of the Venice Commission. That is why we do not hurry to adopt the draft law on Adjara’s status,” Parliamentary Chairperson Nino Burjanadze said on June 18.
A month ago, on May 18, the Parliament of Georgia called for public discussion of the draft law over distribution of powers between Georgia’s central government and Adjara Autonomous Republic.
According to the law the constitutional draft law should be put for a public discussion a month before the document is discussed by the Parliament.
According to the submitted draft law Adjara’s Autonomous Republic will be run by the Supreme Council – the local legislative body and the Executive Council – the executive government.
The President of Georgia will nominate of Chairmen of the Supreme and Executive Councils for approval.
The President of Georgia also has the right to disband these bodies, in case their activity “would threaten country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
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