Georgia: New Defense Code Establishes System of Mandatory Military Service
On October 12, 2023, the president of Georgia, Salome Zurabishvili, signed Law No. 3500-XIIIMS-XMP on the Defense Code, introducing compulsory military service and a new conscription system in the country.Reportedly, the government of Georgia developed the defense policy act “on the Finnish and Baltic countries models.” This approach is based on a total defense strategy, with … Continue reading “Georgia: New Defense Code Establishes…
Contributor:
Fremer, Iana
Date:2023-12-28
Article
Georgia: Constitution and Election Code Amended to Change Electoral System
(Aug. 20, 2020) On June 29, 2020, the president of Georgia, Salome Zourabichvili, signed a new law amending the Constitution of Georgia to change the election system and electoral process in the country. (Constitutional Law, No. 6500-RS, On the Amendments to the Constitution of Georgia.) The amendments to the Constitution were published on the same […]
Contributor:
Fremer, Iana
Date:2020-08-20
Article
Georgia: Marijuana Use Decriminalized
(Dec. 13, 2017) On November 30, 2017, the Constitutional Court of Georgia decriminalized the personal use of marijuana and other cannabis-based products. The Court decision, while affirming the right to use marijuana, recognized its potential health risks and did not legalize the sale, distribution, or production of marijuana; those acts are still considered crimes. Decriminalization […]
Contributor:
Johnson, Constance
Date:2017-12-13
Article
Georgia, Kyrgyzstan: Marriages of Minors Prohibited
(May 9, 2017) As of January 1, 2017, article 15073 of the Civil Code of Georgia, which had temporarily allowed marriages of minors, became obsolete. (Law No. 4646 of December 16, 2016 on Amending the Civil Code of Georgia, MATSNE.GOV.GE (official publication) (in Georgian).) The article was a transitory provision that had remained in effect […]
Contributor:
Roudik, Peter
Date:2017-05-09
Article
European Union/Georgia: Negotiations on Visa-Free Travel
(Nov. 11, 2016) The European Parliament, in the final stages of the integration process of Georgia into the European Union, called on the Council of the EU to start negotiations on a visa waiver for Georgia “without any further delay.” (Press Release, European Parliament, EP Urges Council to Open Talks on a Visa Waiver for […]
Contributor:
Levush, Ruth
Date:2016-11-11
Article
Georgia: Military Conscription Terminated
(Oct. 31, 2016) On June 27, 2016, the Minister of Defense of Georgia signed an order cancelling compulsory military service and creating armed forces based solely on voluntary recruitment. The order was issued almost a year ahead of a planned legislative amendment on creating a professional Georgian military that was debated in the Georgian Parliament. […]
Contributor:
Roudik, Peter
Date:2016-10-31
Article
Georgia: New Legislation Simplifies Tax Code
(Sept. 2, 2016) On May 13, 2016, the Parliament of Georgia unanimously approved amendments to the country’s Tax Code. (Law of Georgia No. 5092 on Amendments to the Tax Code of Georgia, MATSNE.GOV.GE (June 1, 2016) (official publication) (in Georgian).) The amendments mainly address corporate income taxation of profit-sharing companies, aligning the national tax system […]
Contributor:
Roudik, Peter
Date:2016-09-02
Article
Georgia: Constitutional Court Rules Against Part of De-Communization Law
(Nov. 23, 2015) On October 28, 2015, the Constitutional Court of Georgia declared unconstitutional and void several provisions of article 9 of the Freedom Charter, which had permanently banned former senior Soviet officials from holding important public offices with central and regional government, judiciary, police, military, and academia. (Constitutional Court of Georgia, Nodar Mumlauri v. […]
Contributor:
Roudik, Peter
Date:2015-11-23
Article
Georgia: Controversy over Anti-Discrimination Bill
(May 7, 2014) Irakli Gharibashvili, Georgia’s Prime Minister, recently spoke in support of a proposed law against discrimination now pending before Georgia’s parliament. He said that while the draft law would protect people from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, it would not promote or grant special privileges to anyone. He added that it […]
Contributor:
Johnson, Constance
Date:2014-05-07
Article
Georgia: New Visa and Migration Rules
(Jan. 9, 2014) On December 13, 2013, the Parliament of Georgia passed, on a first reading, the Bill on the Legal Status of Foreign and Stateless Individuals. (Legal Status of Foreigners Will Be Regulated by a New Law [in Russian], GEORGIANS.RU (Dec. 16, 2013).) Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs Levan Izoria, who introduced the legislation […]
Contributor:
Roudik, Peter
Date:2014-01-09
Article
Georgia: System of Public Financial Disclosures Implemented
(Apr. 26, 2013) In May 2013, Georgian senior government officials working in all branches of government will submit their public financial disclosure reports and asset declarations to the country’s Civil Service Bureau (CSB) for the 15th time. (Law of Georgia on the Conflict of Interests and Corruption in Public Service [hereinafter Law on Conflict of […]
Contributor:
Roudik, Peter
Date:2013-04-26
Article
Georgia: Public Service Halls
(Nov. 6, 2012) On September 21, 2012, the Public Service Hall, also called the House of Justice, opened in the Georgian capital city of
Contributor:
Roudik, Peter
Date:2012-11-06
Article
Georgia: Criminalization of Domestic Violence
(Nov. 5, 2012) On June 12, 2012, the Parliament of Georgia adopted a package of amendments to the country’s Criminal Code and added two new articles that recognize domestic violence as a criminal act. (Law No. 6434 on Amendments to the Criminal Code of the Republic of Georgia (June 12, 2012) [in Georgian], Saqartvelos Sakanonmdeblo […]
Contributor:
Roudik, Peter
Date:2012-11-05
Article
Georgia: Jurors in Tbilisi Court Pronounce Guilty Verdicts
(June 21, 2012) On June 15, 2012, a guilty verdict was pronounced by jurors in a case of premeditated murder tried in Tbilisi City Court. (Davit Rusishvili to Be Sent to 21-Year Imprisonment, RUSTAVI 2 TV CHANNEL (June 15, 2012).) This appears to be the third case resolved by jurors since jury trials were introduced […]
Contributor:
Roudik, Peter
Date:2012-06-21
Article
Georgia: Courts with Jurors Established Nationwide
(Nov. 9, 2011) As of July 1, 2012, jury trials will commence throughout Georgia, making it the first nation in the South Caucasus to implement a jury trial system nationwide. (Criminal Procedure Code of the Republic of Georgia, Parliament of Georgia website [in Georgian] (last visited Oct. 26, 2011) (official text).) The system was constructed […]
Contributor:
Roudik, Peter
Date:2011-11-09
Article
Georgia: Court Verdicts on Border-Crossing Offenses Vary Depending on Nationality of the Accused
(July 11, 2011) Russia continues to expand its ties with the secessionist Georgian territories of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, which are promoted as vacation destinations for Russian summer travelers. (See news reports and travel information [in Russian], Abkhazian Embassy in Russia website (last visited July 8, 2011).) However, the border crossing into these territories from […]
Contributor:
Roudik, Peter
Date:2011-07-11
Article
Georgia: Ban on Soviet Symbols Proposed
(Dec. 8, 2010) As reported by the Newsru.com Information Agency, on October 29, 2010, the Parliament of Georgia almost unanimously adopted the “Liberty Charter” introduced by pro-government parliamentary factions. The document provides for additional national security measures, lustration of former high-level Soviet officials, and a prohibition against the use and display of Soviet and Nazi […]
Contributor:
Roudik, Peter
Date:2010-12-08
Article
Georgia: Constitutional Amendments Discussed in Parliament
(Sept. 23, 2010) After the constitutionally required month of public discussions regarding the change of the nation's Constitution following the approval of the draft by the country's Constitutional Commission on July 21, 2010, the Parliament of Georgia added the issue of constitutional amendments to its agenda and began deliberations of the new draft of the […]
Contributor:
Roudik, Peter
Date:2010-09-23
Article
Georgia; Russian Federation: Separatist Regions of Georgia Conclude Military Agreements with Russia
(June 10, 2010) On May 5, 2010, the parliament of South Ossetia, a disputed region within Georgia that declared its independence from Georgia in 1990, ratified the Treaty on Military Cooperation with Russia, which was signed in Moscow on April 7, 2010. (Statement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia on the Treaty on […]
Contributor:
Roudik, Peter
Date:2010-06-10
Article
Georgia: New Rules for Street Rallies
(Aug. 26, 2009) On July 11, 2009, the Parliament of the Republic of Georgia adopted amendments to the nation's Law on Mass Gatherings and Demonstrations, placing restrictions on the conduct of street protests. According to the amendments, protests cannot be held within 20 yards of the entrances of listed government office buildings. Also, protesters are […]
Contributor:
Roudik, Peter
Date:2009-08-26
Article
Georgia: Laws Translated into Minority Languages
(Jan. 23, 2009) On January 5, 2009, the Government of Georgia launched the publication of the nation's Constitution and other legislative acts in the Azerbaijani language. Ethnic Azerbaijanis are the largest minority group in Georgia and constitute about seven percent of the country's population of 4.6 million. They reside mainly in Kvemo Kartli Province, where […]
Contributor:
Roudik, Peter
Date:2009-01-23
Article
Georgia: Amnesty Law
(Dec. 1, 2008) On November 21, 2008, the Parliament of the Republic of Georgia adopted the Law on Amnesty. An amnesty was proposed by the government as one of the measures to celebrate the fifth anniversary of the Rose Revolution of November 2003, which brought the current administration to power. It will be the first […]
Contributor:
Roudik, Peter
Date:2008-12-01
Article
Georgia: Further Democratizaton of Political Process
(Sept. 25, 2008) On September 16, 2008, the President of Georgia delivered his “State of the Nation” address to the Parliament and proposed a series of reforms aimed at further democratization of the political process in the country. Simultaneously, using his right of legislative initiative, the President submitted to the Parliament bills amending major laws […]
Contributor:
Roudik, Peter
Date:2008-09-25
Article
Georgia: New Election Legislation
(Dec. 2, 2007) On November 20, 2007, as a part of the compromise between the opposition parties, the Parliament adopted amendments to Georgia's election laws, which will apply during the 2008 parliamentary elections. The amendments decrease the election threshold for the parties from the present seven percent to five, affect the composition of the election […]
