On June 22, a group of six civil society outfits welcomed the passage of constitutional amendments in the first reading in a statement, which stressed the “full implementation of March 8 Agreement” is necessary for the amendments to become law.
The group expressed hope that “all political parties will assume responsibility to implement the March 8 Agreement and take reasonable steps towards promptly approving the changes in all three readings.”
The watchdogs stressed that “improving the election system” in the run-up to 2020 polls was crucial for a stable and democratic political environment. “Given current circumstances, voting in favor of the amendments was the only right decision – in the interests of the state,” the CSOs noted.
The group pointed out that the March 8 Agreement between the government and the opposition also called for resolving the issue of “inappropriate politicization of Georgia’s judicial and electoral environment,” and of “exploiting the judiciary against political opponents.”
They referred to a statement issued earlier by the international facilitators of negotiations between the ruling party and the opposition, saying it “clearly indicates that the said clause of the agreement is not fully implemented”.
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