Human Rights Crisis in  Georgia Following the 2024  Parliamentary Elections

Since 2023, Georgia has been on the path to establishing a semi-consolidated authoritarian regime1, which is ruled by the "Georgian Dream". The parliamentary elections of 26 October 2024 are the culmination of the anti-human rights policies and the capture of the democratic institutions. Widespread violations, including the procedural violations, obstruction of the observers, violation of the secrecy of the ballot and the undue influence on the voters, indicate a systemic practice of electoral manipulation by the ruling party. 

The unconstitutional government of the "Georgian Dream" is now (as of March 2025) rapidly seeking, through its actions and the abuse of legislative powers, to reduce the remaining space for dissent and continue its rule indefinitely, thereby completely ignoring Georgia's constitutionally enshrined Euro-Atlantic foreign policy.  As of March 2025, the "Georgian Dream" regime has completely ignored fundamental freedoms, including the freedom of assembly, which has been widely exercised by the Georgian people since 28 November 2024, when the "Georgian Dream" government announced the suspension of negotiations with the European Union. The regime has physically abused and systematically tortured hundreds of demonstrators, using force and/or unknown chemical irritants, resulting in long-term health effects, as documented by, among others, organizations such as the IRCT and OMCT4 (which was later supported by 6 UN Special Rapporteurs).5 The "Georgian Dream" government is suppressing dissent by passing repressive laws (86%6 of recently initiated draft laws have been passed in an accelerated manner)7 and has also initiated a purge8 of the public servants with different positions9 in the public sector. From 19 November 2024 to 28 February 2025, according to the non governmental organizations’ Legal Aid Network10, administrative proceedings have been initiated against 1084 individuals and 486 individuals have been administratively arrested.11 In addition, since the April-May 2024 protests, in the context of the ongoing protests, more than 60 individuals have been arrested under criminal law, who could not/cannot enjoy the right to a fair trial. 4. A fighting civil society (including not only the non-governmental organizations but also activists and demonstrators), media actors and a certain degree of the political competition distinguish Georgia from the complete autocracies. However, these three actors are increasingly becoming the main targets of the autocracy. The following developments attest to this:  Despite the ongoing case in the Constitutional Court, by recognizing the authority of the new members, the Georgian Parliament has violated the Constitution and its own rules of procedure, which made its authority illegitimate.12 As a result, any decision by the "Georgian Dream" Parliament, including the appointment of the new President, Mikheil Kavelashvili, on 29 December 2024, is illegitimate.