VIENNA, 13 December 2024 — Today, the OSCE Troika – Malta, North Macedonia and Finland – made the following statement:
“We, the members of the OSCE Troika, strongly condemn the Georgian authorities’ violent response to peaceful protests by Georgian civil society, independent media, and politicians, who are standing up for the country’s democratic future. We urge the Georgian authorities to immediately cease the use of repressive tactics and intimidation, including arbitrary detention and physical violence.
We call on the Georgian authorities to guarantee the rights to freedom of assembly and freedom of expression for the people in Georgia, in line with Georgia’s international obligations. Laws adopted in contradiction with these commitments must be repealed.
All allegations of violence, election fraud, and attacks against democratic values and principles must be credibly investigated, and all those responsible for these crimes must be held to account.
We urge the Georgian authorities to uphold human rights, democracy, and the rule of law in line with our shared OSCE principles and commitments as enshrined already in the Helsinki Final Act and the Charter of Paris.
We encourage the Georgian authorities to make use of the various tools and expertise the OSCE and its institutions can offer. The Troika stands ready to facilitate any exchange to this end.
We stand with the Georgian people as they express their aspiration for a democratic and European future, as codified in the Georgian constitution.”
/Argumentum.al
