Georgian Dream Says Parliament to Continue Appointment Process of Supreme Court Judges
Georgian Dream Chairperson MP Irakli Kobakhidze today said Parliament shall not halt the appointment process of Supreme Court Judges, stressing that the ruling party had already fulfilled obligations to reform the relevant candidate selection procedure ahead of signing the EU-brokered April 19 deal.
MP Kobakhidze underscored that amendments to the the Law on Common Courts, passed in April amid the opposition’s Parliamentary boycott, reflect the key recommendations of the Venice Commission with regards to the selection procedure.
Recalling that the passed amendments were then again sent to the Venice Commission for evaluation, the Georgian Dream Chairperson claimed that the subsequent assessment did not raise concerns over the implementation of previous key recommendations.
The senior Georgian Dream lawmaker also said that the ruling party disagrees with backlash from “certain opposition forces,” who claim the appointment of Supreme Court Judges contradicts the spirit of the April 19 deal.
Noteworthy that earlier on June 19, U.S. Ambassador to Georgia Kelly Degnan said she was “extremely disappointed” to see the High Council of Justice push through Supreme Court nominations to Parliament, and stressed that this was “not in the spirit” of the April 19 deal. A number of local watchdogs also raised concerns in this regard, arguing that the move “indicates a lack of political will to implement qualitative changes in the judiciary.”
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