In Georgia in the past year, the right to peaceful assembly has been seriously threatened on multiple occasions and authorities have failed to ensure the protection of this fundamental freedom.
Although there are good examples when the police facilitated demonstrations, not everyone could feel safe while fighting for their rights. In particular, the LGBTQI+ community faced serious challenges when it came to the exercise of their right to protest, as seen during the Pride Week in 2021.
In a recently published study, Human Rights Center Georgia with support from ECNL, provides a detailed overview of the legal framework concerning the right to peaceful assembly and its manifestation in Georgia. The report identifies main gaps in law and practice, highlights various types of assemblies held during the past year (September 2020 – August 2021) and through case studies illustrates state authorities failing to facilitate the right or applying excessive and disproportionate force.
In terms of legal reform needed, the report has formulated the following recommendations:
- remove the blanket prohibition of blocking the entrances of buildings during assemblies, give discretion to law enforcement to decide whether or not to allow the blocking of entrances of buildings on a case-by-case basis;
- remove the provision that lists disclosure of confidential information and ensuring the independence and impartiality of justice as a permissible ground to restrict an assembly;
- allow appealing against municipality decisions that restrict time and place of assemblies and provide prompt time frame for the judicial determination of the matter;
- introduce exception from the rule of submitting prior warning/notification regarding holding assemblies and do not require warning for spontaneous assemblies. Introduce a definition for spontaneous assemblies in the law;
- require law enforcement to provide information as to the type of special means when they are used at assemblies;
- bring the provisions of the Law on Police on non-lethal shells and water cannons in compliance with the UN Human Rights Guidance on Less Lethal Weapons in Law Enforcement, determine the circumstances these may be used.