See related documentsElection observation report
| Doc. 13359
| 21 November 2013
Observation of the presidential election in Georgia (27 October 2013)
1. Introduction
1. At its meeting on 30 May 2013, the Bureau of the
Parliamentary Assembly decided to observe the presidential election
in Georgia (subject to receiving an invitation and confirmation
of the date) and to this end set up an ad hoc committee comprising
30 members and the two co-rapporteurs of the Committee on the Honouring
of Commitments and Obligations by Member States of the Council of
Europe (Monitoring Committee). The Bureau also authorised a pre-electoral
mission comprising seven members (one from each political group
and the two co-rapporteurs of the Monitoring Committee). At its
meeting on 28 June, the Bureau appointed Ms Meritxell Mateu Pi Chair
of the ad hoc committee. On 16 July, the Assembly received a letter from
the President of the Georgian Parliament inviting it to observe
the presidential election on 27 October. The Bureau took note of
the declarations on absence of conflict of interests of candidates
for the observation mission and approved the composition of the
ad hoc committee (see Appendix 1).
2. On 4 October 2004, the Parliamentary Assembly and the European
Commission for Democracy through Law (the “Venice Commission”) signed
a co-operation agreement. In accordance with Article 15 of that agreement,
stipulating that “[w]hen the Bureau of the Assembly decides to observe
an election in a country in which electoral legislation was previously
examined by the Venice Commission, one of the rapporteurs of the Venice
Commission on this issue may be invited to join the Assembly's election
observation mission as legal adviser”, the Bureau invited an expert
from the Venice Commission to join the ad hoc committee as an adviser, assisted
by a member of the Venice Commission secretariat.
3. The Bureau sent a pre-electoral delegation to Georgia from
on 24 and 25 September 2013 to evaluate the state of preparations
and the political climate in the run-up to the elections. The multiparty
delegation was made up of Meritxell Mateu Pi (Andorra, ALDE), Head
of Delegation, Anders Herkel (Estonia, EPP/CD), Lord Tomlinson (United
Kingdom, SOC) and Boriss Cilevičs (Latvia, SOC), co-rapporteur on
the monitoring of Georgia. Besides Mr Vassily Likhachev (Russian
Federation), whose case is explained below, two other members of
the pre-electoral delegation, Mr Chope and Mr Jensen, were unable
to take part in the visit.
4. Some days before the beginning of the pre-electoral visit
to Georgia, on 20 September, the Georgian protocol services informed
the Assembly Secretariat that Mr Likhachev, member of pre-electoral
delegation appointed by the Group of the Unified European Left,
would not be allowed to enter Georgian territory, owing to his previous
visit to Abkhazia, Georgia, when he had entered this territory by
one of the passing points forbidden by the Georgian law on the occupied
territories, enacted in 2008.
On
22 September, the Georgian authorities confirmed that “if Mr Vassiliy
Likhachev or other members of the Assembly had entered the occupied
regions of Georgia without prior authorisation from the Georgian
Government, they were liable to criminal punishment – a fine and/or
a prison sentence”. The Assembly Secretariat forwarded this information to
the Russian Delegation. Mr Likhachev was therefore unable to take
part in the pre-electoral visit to Georgia. On 30 September, the
Bureau considered the case of Mr Likhachev, who had been prevented
from taking part in the pre-electoral visit, and decided to seek
the opinion of the Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities and
Institutional Affairs on this matter, so as to be able to take a
decision at its meeting in Vienna on 21 November 2013. Another member
of the delegation of the Russian Federation, Mr Sergey Kalashnikov,
who had been appointed by the European Democrat Group, did not take
part in the election observation mission for the same reasons.
5. During the election observation mission, the Georgian authorities
informed the Chair of the ad hoc committee that an amendment to
the law on the occupied territories was being drafted to make it
more flexible and that the political context of the election campaign
meant that it could not be enacted within the fixed time-limit.
The draft amendment would be sent to the Venice Commission for opinion
in November.
6. During the pre-electoral visit to Georgia, the delegation
met the main candidates standing for election, the Prime Minister,
the President of the Parliament, the Minister of Justice, the Secretary
of the National Security Council, the Chair of the Central Electoral
Commission, the Head of the delegation of the Office for Democratic
Institutions and Human Rights of the Organisation for Security and
Co-operation in Europe (OSCE/ODIHR) and the members of his team,
representatives of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and the media
and members of the diplomatic community. The delegation was not
able to meet the incumbent President, Mr Mikheil Saakashvili, who
was visiting the United States. The programme of the pre-electoral mission
is set out in Appendix 2.
7. At the end of its two-day visit to Georgia, the pre-electoral
delegation found, in the light of the statements by most of the
persons interviewed, that “there was currently a more open, and
equally competitive, electoral environment compared to other recent
elections. Georgia has the possibility to conduct a presidential
election which enjoys its citizens’ confidence and meets Council
of Europe standards. This would be a remarkable achievement for
the country and the region”. But to achieve this, “cases of politically
motivated violence and intimidation of opposition supporters, pressure
on officials to resign prematurely from their elected or appointed positions,
and undue interference of local officials in the election process
must be excluded during the election campaign. The relevant authorities
should investigate any allegations of election campaign violations,
firm and proportional sanctions should be applied in order to avoid
violations in the future, and the public should be informed about
measures undertaken”. The declaration by the pre-electoral delegation
at the end of its visit is set out in Appendix 3.
8. The ad hoc committee was part of the international election
observation mission (IEOM), which also included delegations from
the Parliamentary Assembly of the OSCE (PA-OSCE), the European Parliament,
the Parliamentary Assembly of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation
(PA-NATO) and the election observation mission of the OSCE/ODIHR.
9. The ad hoc committee met in Tbilisi from 25 to 28 October 2013
where, among other things, it met the main candidates running for
election, the Chair of the Central Electoral Commission (CEC), the
Head of the OSCE/ODIHR observation election mission and the members
of his team, and representatives of civil society and the media.
The programme of the ad hoc committee’s meetings is set out in Appendix
4.
10. The international election mission observing the presidential
election concluded that “the 27 October presidential election in
Georgia was efficiently administered, transparent and took place
in an amicable and constructive environment. Fundamental freedoms
of expression, movement and assembly were respected, and candidates
were able to campaign without restriction. Just one year after the
parliamentary elections, Georgia’s citizens have again demonstrated
their political maturity in this presidential election, in a peaceful climate
and with an inclusive process, thanks to the election administration.
These elections are an important achievement for the country and
for the entire South Caucasus region”. The IEOM press release is
set out in Appendix 5.
11. The election observation mission wishes to thank Ms Caterina
Bolognese, Head of the Council of Europe Office in Georgia, and
her staff for their help in preparing and organising the pre-electoral
visit as well as the mission for the observation of the presidential
election.
2. Legal
context and new amendments to the Electoral Code adopted in 2013
12. The main legislative text governing the presidential
election of 27 October 2013 is the Electoral Code, adopted on 27 December 2011
and amended in July and September 2013. The other relevant legislative
texts include the Constitution, the Organic Law on Political Unions
of Citizens, which concerns the funding of political parties and
election campaigns, and the orders and decrees of the CEC.
14. The 2010 constitutional reform transferred a considerable
number of powers from the Head of State to the Prime Minister and
the parliament. The newly elected President of the Republic will
not have the authority to dissolve the government and form a new
cabinet without the approval of the parliament. It is the Prime Minister
who will appoint the governors of the regions, who were previously
appointed by the President of the Republic. The constitutional reform,
amending the powers of the Head of State, was unanimously approved
by the members of the Georgian Parliament present at the vote on
21 March 2010.
15. The latest opinions issued by the Venice Commission and the
OSCE/ODIHR on electoral issues are the joint opinion on amendments
and additions to the Organic Law on Political Unions of Citizens
and
the joint opinion on the new draft Electoral Code of Georgia.
The
conclusions of the appraisal of the Electoral Code are on the whole
positive, although some concerns were expressed with regard to the
following points:
a. The formation
of electoral districts that undermine the principle of equality
of suffrage;
b. The need to protect election commission members from arbitrary
removal by setting out the grounds on which removal is justified
compared to the grounds requiring a lesser sanction;
c. The restrictions on the right to stand for election, including
the excessively long residency requirement for candidates;
d. The restrictions on the right to vote of citizens in penitentiary
institutions and of military staff;
e. In its opinion, the Venice Commission recommended that
further measures be taken to prevent the misuse of all types of
administrative resources in election campaigns;
f. Lack of effective mechanisms to facilitate the participation
of women in elections;
g. Continued inconsistencies in regulations concerning the
funding of political parties and election campaigns;
h. The need to specify the procedures to be used during the
recount;
i. Inconsistencies in the procedure for the resolution of
electoral appeals.
16. Most of the amendments to the Electoral Code adopted in 2013
concern the use of administrative resources, the voters list, biometric
registration and the funding of candidates. They do not concern
special regulations for the registration of presidential candidates.
Amendments to the Law on Political Unions of Citizens concerning
party funding were adopted on 24 July and 7 August 2013 by the Georgian
Parliament:
a. Up to one million
lari (GEL 1 million) of the campaign
expenses of any presidential candidate who has secured at least
10% of the votes will be refunded. This is a very large sum for
a country in transition such as Georgia;
b. Georgian business enterprises and legal entities may make
donations to political parties of up to GEL 120 000 per company
and per year. Only companies registered in Georgia, whose owners
are Georgian, and not more than 15% of whose income for the previous
year came from public contracts under simplified procurement procedures,
are allowed to make donations;
c. The basic funding of parties which have exceeded the minimum
requirements for funding has been increased from GEL 150 000 to
GEL 300 000 per year (the amount per seat and the amount per vote remains
the same). The minimum requirement was also reduced from 4% to 3%
of the votes at the last legislative elections (and to 3% at the
last municipal elections, as in the past). Moreover, the parties
or electoral blocs which secured 6% of the votes at the last legislative
or municipal receive twice the basic funding (in other words GEL
600 000);
d. By way of exception, public funds may be used to refund
a number of non-parliamentary parties. According to this amendment,
GEL 150 000 will be paid out to the seven non-parliamentary parties which
secured the best results at the last legislative elections (without
having secured any seats in parliament), if they submit their request
to the Court of Auditors within a month after the ballot. This amendment
was made as part of a compromise following the strong protests by
the non-parliamentary opposition against the increase in public
funding of the parties represented in parliament;
e. The annual ceiling for spending by political parties and
other candidates has been reduced from 0.2% to 0.1% of Georgian
gross domestic product (GDP). The ceiling on expenditure, in other
words the annual amount that parties and other candidates can legally
spend on the election campaign has been reduced by half and now
represents some GEL 26.1 million. This amount is, however, still
very considerable for a country such as Georgia.
f. Experts had recommended that the amount should not be
linked to the GDP and that a realistic ceiling should be fixed taking
account of the size of the population and the campaign tools available;
g. The amendment concerning the activities of third parties
is aimed at regulating such activities in the context of an election
campaign by defining electoral objectives which require that persons
should provide evidence of their commitment to coming to power by
taking part in elections. The aim is to rule out the possibility
that natural or legal persons might use financial or material resources
for or against a party or candidate by giving the latter an unfair
advantage or, in the event of a smear campaign, by placing them
at a disadvantage. With regard to this amendment, the experts recommended
that this article be replaced by a clearer definition and clearer
regulation of the activities of third parties;
h. The Law on Political Unions of Citizens has been amended
to ensure that more proportionate sanctions are applied in cases
of illegal donations and to improve procedures;
i. Parties with an annual budget of less than or equal to
GEL 10 000 will no longer be obliged to submit a financial report
to the Court of Auditors along with their financial declaration.
17. Generally speaking, with regard to the recent amendments to
the legislation aimed at increasing the funding of political parties,
the question is whether this provision will really help to set up
a multiparty system or simply lead to a further increase in election
expenditure.
18. The following amendments concerning voting operations on polling
day were adopted:
a. All paid or
free-of-charge pre-electoral advertising on television channels
or radio stations is forbidden;
b. The publication of the results of opinion polls, with
the exception of those concerning potential turnout and actual turnout
on polling day, is prohibited until 8 p.m. on polling day;
c. It is forbidden to take photographs or to film in the
polling booths to guarantee secrecy;
d. The persons authorised to be present in the polling station
may take photographs or film the polling station, with the exception
of the polling booths and provided they do not disrupt the work
of the commission.
3. Administration
of the presidential election
19. The presidential election was organised by a three-tier
electoral administration, comprising the Central Electoral Commission
(CEC), 73 district electoral commissions (DECs) and 3 655 precinct
electoral commissions (PECs). Thirty-four special polling stations
were set up in hospitals, military bases, prisons and detention
centres and 52 others in consular representations abroad.
20. All of the above commissions comprised 13 members, seven of
whom had been appointed by qualifying political parties. According
to Georgian legal provisions, “qualifying parties” are parties that
received at least 4% of the votes in the previous parliamentary
elections or at least 3% of the votes in the previous local elections.
For the CEC, the Chair and the five remaining members are appointed
by parliament. For the DECs and PECs, the remaining six members
are appointed by the higher level election commissions. As a result
of this appointment system, the “Georgian Dream” coalition had a de facto majority on all election
commissions.
21. In this connection, the Assembly’s pre-electoral delegation
drew the Georgian authorities’ attention to the need to make further
improvements to the legislation to increase the representation of
political parties at all levels of the electoral commissions. This
question of the almost exclusive presence of representatives of
the two main political formations – “Georgian Dream” and United
National Movement (UNM) – at all levels of the electoral commissions
was criticised by some presidential candidates, with the exception
of the candidates from these formations who, as a result, benefited
from the advantages of public funding.
22. On 12 August, Zurab Kharatishvili, Chair of the CEC, handed
in his resignation, 11 weeks before the presidential election. Mr Kharatishvili
had been elected by the previous parliament in January 2010 for
a five-year term of office. The European Democrats of Georgia subsequently
put forwarded his name as their presidential candidate and he was
accordingly registered by the CEC.
23. In accordance with the Electoral Code, incumbent President
Saakashvili submitted three candidatures for chairmanship of the
CEC, including Ms Tamar Zhvania, former leader of an election observation
group based in Tbilisi. Under the relevant procedure, it was subsequently
up to the members of the CEC appointed by the political parties,
with the exception of the member of the opposition appointed by
the UNM, to choose one of the three candidates. On 11 September,
the six representatives of the “Georgian Dream” coalition on the
CEC voted for Ms Zhvania, who was consequently given a five-year
term of office as Chair of the Central Electoral Commission with
the approval of the main political forces and civil society groups.
The general opinion is that the CEC managed these elections in a
transparent and efficient manner.
24. In July 2013, the parliament adopted amendments to the Electoral
Code making the Inter-Agency Task Force for Free and Fair Elections
(IATF) answerable to the Ministry of Justice rather than to the
National Security Council. According to the Electoral Code, the
aim of the IATF was to “prevent infringements of electoral legislation
by public officials and to respond to any such infringements”. Political
parties had the right to take part in IATF meetings and representatives
of local and international organisations for the observation of
elections could also be invited to take part. Although the work
of the IATF proved useful during the election campaign, the role
of this body in relation to the electoral administration needs to
be clarified.
4. Registration of
candidates and voters
25. The CEC informed the delegation that 54 candidates
had submitted their candidatures. All presidential candidates must
be at least 35 years of age and have lived in the country for at
least five years. The lists of signatures in support of presidential
candidates were submitted to the CEC on 17 September. Before this
date the candidates had to submit to the CEC at least 26 530 signatures
(0.75% of the total number of voters registered on the polling lists)
in order for their candidature to be validated. 27 September was
the deadline for the registration of presidential candidates by
the CEC. At that date, the CEC had registered 23 presidential candidates
who met all the conditions required by the relevant legislation:
10 had been nominated or elected in political party primary elections,
while 13 candidates had been nominated by initiative groups.
26. Ms Salome Zurabishvili, former Georgian Minister for Foreign
Affairs, had also put forward her candidature but had come up against
legal problems because of her dual French and Georgian nationality. Three
other candidates had come up against the same problem and their
candidatures had been rejected by the CEC.
27. The Georgian Constitution stipulates that people with dual
nationality who were not born in Georgia cannot become President.
Ms Zurabishvili argued that although the Constitution undeniably
forbade people with dual nationality from becoming President, it
did not forbid them from standing for election. The CEC had already
refused to register other binational candidates. On 10 September,
the Tbilisi Court of Appeal confirmed the CEC’s decision to refuse
to register Salome Zurabishvili’s application to stand for the presidential
election of 27 October on grounds of her dual nationality.
28. According to the CEC, 3 537 719 Georgians were registered
on the voter lists, including 48 458 who were registered on voter
lists abroad. Some presidential candidates said that they had doubts
as to the accuracy of the voter lists, claiming that hundreds of
thousands of Georgians had been absent from Georgia for long periods
of time but that their names were still on the lists.
29. The CEC noted that some 98 000 voters had an address on their
identity card which was not their real address. In August this year,
some 98 000 voters, around 70 000 of whom resided in Tbilisi, were
excluded from the voter lists. The CEC explained that for the sake
of transparency in order to check voter lists, it had changed the
criteria: it therefore invited all Georgian citizens who had the
right to vote to acquire a new identity card with their correct
address to ensure that they could exercise their right to vote.
30. When certain addresses were checked, the authorities concerned
discovered that the tenants and the owners of the property in question
were different people. The Assembly delegation was informed that
there could be many reasons for this, such as embargos (seizures
of property), property sold, unannounced departures, or even deaths.
The CEC and the Inter-Agency Task Force for Free and Fair Elections
had launched a campaign so that this category of voters could be
registered. The campaign had been accompanied by adverts in the
different media, by direct access to a web page set up for this
purpose, by information material and non-coercive measures – given
that the obtention of the identity card would be free of charge
until 27 September or even beyond if the objectives set were not
reached; in other words if only a small number of Georgians requested
an identity card. At the end of the campaign only 9 142 voters had
been reregistered on the voter lists. Generally speaking, with regard
to voter lists, the Assembly delegation pointed out that the accuracy
of voter lists needed to be guaranteed to give citizens more confidence
in the entire election procedure and make sure that Georgian citizens
who were entitled to vote were not deprived of that right for administrative
reasons.
5. Election campaign
and media environment
31. In keeping with the Constitution, the outgoing President,
Mikhail Saakashvili, did not put forward his candidature for the
presidential election of 27 October, as he had already completed
two terms of office. The previous presidential election had taken
place on 5 January 2008.
32. On 1 July 2013, President Saakashvili decided to hold the
presidential election on 27 October 2013. It was the sixth election
since Georgia became independent in 1991. However, this is the first
time since Georgia became independent 22 years ago that a democratically
elected President completed his term of office. The two previous
Presidents, Zviad Gamsakhurdia and Eduard Shevardnadze, had been
obliged to step down from office before the end of their mandate.
33. The President is elected for a five-year term of office.
To be elected in the first ballot,
a candidate must obtain the absolute majority of the votes cast.
Otherwise, a second ballot, in which the two candidates who obtained
the best results in the first ballot will compete, must be held
within two weeks of the official announcement of the outcome of
the first ballot.
34. Numerous people to whom the ad hoc committee spoke said that
the legislative elections in October 2012 had been the first time
there had been a peaceful change in the parliamentary majority.
The presidential election on 27 October 2013 therefore offered Georgia
a genuine opportunity to strengthen the pluralist and democratic
nature of its electoral process. In its declaration on 25 September,
the Assembly’s pre-electoral delegation stated that “Georgia has
the possibility to conduct a Presidential election which enjoys
its citizens’ confidence and meets Council of Europe standards”
and that “this would be a remarkable achievement for the country
and the region”.
35. The members of the ad hoc committee and the pre-electoral
delegation met the main presidential candidates. Giorgi Margvelashvili
had been appointed presidential candidate by the “Georgian Dream” coalition
on 11 May 2013. His candidature had been endorsed by Prime Minister
Bidzina Ivanichvili. The priorities of the coalition candidate were
the economic and social development of Georgia, the normalisation of
relations with Russia, at least from the standpoint of trade relations,
the country’s security, which should be consolidated now that it
belonged to the free world, and its gradual integration into the
European Union. In this connection, Georgia is expected to sign
the Association Agreement with the European Union in Vilnius in November
2013; this will mark the beginning of a genuine process of European
integration and will also help Georgia in its accession to NATO.
36. On 28 June 2013, Davit Bakradze was appointed presidential
candidate of the United National Movement following the party’s
primary election. He was President of the Georgian Parliament from
2008 to 2012. When he met the Assembly delegation, he said that
his main priority was Georgia’s integration into the European Union
and NATO. According to the UNM candidate, he and his supporters
had been subjected to pressure and intimidated during the electoral
events held by his party at the beginning of the campaign, particularly
in the regions. For example, he mentioned the violent incidents
that took place on 20 July between the supporters of the Prime Minister
and supporters of the United National Movement in Zugdidi Theatre. According
to the information received by the delegation, 12 people presumed
to be responsible for the incidents were sent to prison in late
July and the Prime Minister unreservedly condemned the violence.
37. The third presidential candidate was Nino Burjanadze, former
President of the Georgian Parliament. Her candidature had been put
forward by “Democratic Movement – United Georgia” (DMUG). She was
in favour of more balanced relations with Russia so as to find a
peaceful solution with regard to Abkhazia and Southern Ossetia.
She told the members of the delegation that she did not believe
that it would really be possible for Georgia to integrate the European
Union or NATO in the foreseeable future. She pointed out that NATO’s statutes
made it impossible for her country to become a member given the
situation with regard to Abkhazia and South Ossetia. She advocated
closer relations with Georgia’s closest neighbours, including Russia.
38. During the pre-electoral visit, some NGO representatives told
the members of the delegation that Ms Burjanadze’s party had reportedly
declared that it had opened only one office to run its election
campaign. On 25 September, the National Audit Department, responsible
for checking the funding of candidates’ election campaigns, declared
that Ms Burjanadze had at least nine campaign offices throughout
Georgia. After the Audit Department had launched the administrative
procedure for checking the funding sources of these offices, the
DMUG rectified the information and said that it had 72 offices in
operation. In this connection and, generally speaking with regard
to the funding of the election campaign, the pre-electoral delegation
of the Assembly asked the Georgian authorities to “improve the transparency
and verification of sources of funding and expenditure of political
parties and candidates”.
39. The pre-electoral delegation and the main election observation
mission also met the presidential candidates Mr Shalva Natelashvili
of the Georgian Labour Party and Mr Giorgi Targamadze, the candidate representing
the Christian-Democratic Movement of Georgia.
40. During the election campaign, the Prime Minister and the candidate
of the “Georgian Dream” coalition, Mr Giorgi Margvelashvili, declared
that if the candidate of the “Georgian Dream” coalition did not
obtain at least 60% of the votes on the first ballot, the “Georgian
Dream” candidate would withdraw his candidature before the second
ballot. According to the leaders of the ruling coalition, the aim
of this declaration was to encourage its voters to take a more active
part in the poll on 27 October. The opposition candidates and some representatives
of NGOs and the media thought that this declaration could be considered
to be pressure by the government on representatives of local authorities
and electoral commissions to ensure that the figure declared was
achieved. According to them, when it came to election practices,
there were still some bad habits. The Assembly’s ad hoc committee
believes that this sort of declaration should not have been made
in order to ensure that voters’ still fragile confidence in the
electoral process was not undermined.
41. Representatives of NGOs, the media and some presidential candidates
drew the attention of the members of the pre-electoral delegation
to the fact that between October 2012 and March 2013 some 5 000 public
officials, at different levels of the public authorities, had resigned
or had been removed from office. Prior to the legislative elections
on 1 October 2012, the UNM in power held the majority of seats in
all Georgian municipalities. Following the victory of the “Georgian
Dream” coalition, the vast majority of the leaders of municipal
authorities had been replaced by people nominated by the coalition;
in other cases the leaders had changed political parties.
42. The representatives of the opposition candidates, NGOs, the
media and the long-term observers of the OSCE/ODIHR spoke of cases
of intimidation or violence against opposition candidates, particularly
during events organised by the UNM candidate. On 4 September, with
a view to avoiding allegations concerning cases of intimidation
of supporters of the opposition, the Minister of Justice drew attention
to the TFIA’s recommendation that investigations into allegations
of misconduct by local leaders and political party supporters be
suspended during the election campaign. However, this recommendation
has not always been followed in some localities.
43. On 10 July, Bidzina Ivanishvili, the Georgian Prime Minister,
declared that his government had the “ambition and desire” to hold
an “exemplary, free and fair” presidential election. When he met
the pre-electoral delegation on 24 September, he reaffirmed his
government’s wish to put an end to the “shameful practice” whereby
the party in power used all available public resources to counter
the opposition. During the same meeting, the Prime Minister confirmed
the statement he had made on 2 September concerning his resignation after
the presidential election to devote himself to the development of
civil society in Georgia.
44. On 29 August, a group of eight civil society organisations
asked the Prosecutor’s Office to investigate the illegal demolition,
on 26 August, of the minaret of a mosque in the village of Chela,
which, it claimed, infringed the right to ownership and the rights
of the local Moslem community to practise their religion. On 2 September,
in a speech made at the annual meeting of Georgian ambassadors,
the Prime Minister said that the minaret had been demolished because
it had been built illegally; however he also said that the authorities should
be “more careful” when dealing with potentially sensitive issues,
such as those relating to religion. All the candidates met by the
Assembly delegation underlined the need to respect the religious
feelings of the different communities.
45. Some NGOs said that during the election campaign, the representatives
of the opposition had had free access to conduct the election campaign
in regions inhabited by national minorities, which had apparently
not been the case at the previous elections. The CEC had published
election material in the languages of the national minorities. The
Assembly delegation underlined the need to create equal conditions
for all Georgian citizens, irrespective or their ethnic or religious
origin. At the end of the pre-electoral visit to Tbilisi, it declared that
“it finds any political exploitation of sensitive ethnic and religious
issues for electoral purposes unacceptable, all the more so in a
multi-ethnic society such as Georgia”.
46. The amended Electoral Code differentiates between “qualified”
candidates (those who have the backing of parties which received
at least 4% of the votes cast at the previous legislative elections
or 3% of the votes at the previous local elections) and “non-qualified”
candidates. This provision of the Electoral Code may make it difficult
for “non-qualified” candidates to gain access to the media, in particular
the private radio broadcasters. The so-called “non-qualified” candidates
claimed that this provision discriminated against them. On 10 October,
the Georgian Public Broadcasting Company included Ms Burdjanadze
on the list of candidates entitled to free airtime on the basis
of the outcome of public opinion polls. Nevertheless, the private
media chose not to give her any free airtime. The GPB-1 channel
held two televised debates between the different candidates on 17
and 18 October. Ms Burdjanadze decided not to take part in the debate
as she had not been chosen to take part in the first debate between
the main candidates, with Mr Margvelashvili and Mr Bakradze.
47. The long-term observers of the OSCE/ODIHR noted that the main
television channels devoted 11 hours of airtime to the Prime Minister’s
three meetings with experts and journalists, during which he openly
advocated voting for Margvelashvili.
48. With regard to coverage of the election campaign, the delegation
said during its visit to Tbilisi that it regretted the conflict
concerning the Georgian Public Broadcasting Company since January
2013. Generally speaking, the media coverage of the election campaign
in Georgia was more open and diversified, giving Georgian citizens
access to a broad range of political views.
6. Polling day
49. On polling day, the ad hoc committee divided into
14 teams which observed the election in Batumi, Goris, Kutaisi,
Mtskheta, Sarajego, Dusheti, Rustavi, Tbilisi and their surrounding
areas. The members of the ad hoc committee noted that turnout was
very low in all the polling stations they visited. They found that
voting took place in an orderly fashion and that the voting and
counting operations were generally carried out in a professional
and serene manner.
50. However, the members of the ad hoc committee identified a
number of technical problems in the polling stations they visited:
- cases of unintentional failure
to comply with procedures for the counting and tabulation of results
in some of the polling stations visited, in particular in rural
areas;
- cases of unauthorised interference by local observers
or political parties in the work of the precinct electoral commissions;
- a problem of access for people with reduced mobility in
quite a large number of polling stations;
- the polling stations were sometimes too small given the
number of members of precinct electoral commissions (13) and the
large number of local observers. If turnout had been higher, this
might have caused serious problems in managing the voting operation;
- the rule concerning invisible ink was not always strictly
applied and there was no systematic verification of its use;
- the Electoral Code authorises video recordings and the
taking of photographs in polling stations but such activities may
have incommoded, and perhaps even intimidated, voters in a number
of polling stations.
51. According to the official preliminary results announced by
the Central Electoral Commission, the main candidates obtained the
following results: Giorgi Margvelashvili (“Georgian Dream” Coalition)
– 62.12%; Davit Bakradze (United National Movement) – 21.72%; Nino
Burdjanadze “Democratic Movement – United Georgia) – 10.18%; Shalva
Natelashvili (Labour Party) – 2.88%; Giorgi Targamadze (Christian
Democrats Movement) – 1.06%. The rate of turnout was 46.96%. Giorgi Margvelashvili
was elected President of Georgia.
7. Conclusions
and recommendations
52. The ad hoc committee concluded that the presidential
election held in Georgia on 27 October 2013 “was efficiently administered,
transparent and took place in an amicable and constructive environment.
Fundamental freedoms of expression, movement and assembly were respected,
and candidates were able to campaign without restriction. Just one
year after the parliamentary elections, Georgia’s citizens have
again demonstrated their political maturity in this presidential
election, in a peaceful climate and with an inclusive process, thanks to
the election administration. These elections are an important achievement
for the country and for the entire South Caucasus region”.
53. Polling day was calm. The members of the ad hoc committee
noted that the poll had been conducted in an orderly fashion and
that the voting and counting of votes had, in general, been conducted
in a professional manner. Cases of unintentional non-compliance
with the counting procedures in certain polling stations had been
observed, particularly in rural areas.
54. The ad hoc committee underlines the fact that, on the whole,
the Electoral Code adopted in 2011 and amended in 2013 has improved
the legislation governing the elections but that there are still
some valid grounds for concern, for example: the need to protect
election commission members from arbitrary removal; the restrictions
on the right to stand for election; and continued inconsistencies
in regulations concerning the funding of political parties and election
campaigns.
55. With regard to the election campaign, the ad hoc committee
was satisfied that presidential candidates had, on the whole, been
free to conduct the election campaign without restrictions, including
in regions inhabited by national minorities, which had apparently
not been the case at the previous elections. Nevertheless, the Assembly
delegation noted that at the beginning of the election campaign
there had been cases of politically motivated violence and intimidation
of opposition supporters, as well as pressure on local public officials.
This sort of practice has no place in an election campaign and the
relevant authorities should investigate all allegations of violations
during the election campaign. Georgian citizens and the Parliamentary Assembly
should be informed of the steps taken.
56. The ad hoc committee regretted that two Russian members of
the Assembly’s ad hoc committee, appointed by the Unified European
Left Group and the European Democrat Group, had been unable to take part
in the mission for the reasons given in paragraph 4 of this report.
57. The ad hoc committee considers that on the whole the Central
Electoral Commission operated satisfactorily, in a professional
and transparent manner, and that the presidential candidates had
confidence in its work. Nevertheless, with regard to the composition
of the electoral commissions at the different levels, the ad hoc
committee firmly believes that further improvements must be made
to the legislation to increase the representation of the other political
parties on the electoral commissions at all levels. Only the two
main political formations – “Georgian Dream” and the UNM – benefit
from the current situation as it gives them the advantage of public
funding.
58. The pre-electoral delegation regretted the conflict concerning
the Georgian public broadcasting body since January 2013, particularly
as this situation continued during the election campaign. According
to the long-term observers of the OSCE/ODIHR, the media environment
was more open than during the 2012 election campaign, with the result
that citizens had access to a broad range of political views.
59. The ad hoc committee considers that the Assembly should continue
its close co-operation with the Georgian Parliament and institutions,
by means of its monitoring procedure, and with the Venice Commission, in
order to resolve the problems noted during the presidential election
on 27 October 2013 and to further consolidate the whole electoral
process.
Appendix 1 – Composition
of the ad hoc committee
(open)
Based on proposals by the political groups
of the Assembly, the ad hoc committee was composed as follows:
- Meritxell MATEU PI*, Head of
the Delegation
- Group of the European People’s
Party (EPP/CD)
- Márton
BRAUN, Hungary
- Iryna GERASHCHENKO, Ukraine
- Valeriu GHILETCHI, Republic of Moldova
- Andres HERKEL*, Estonia
- Denis JACQUAT, France
- Inese LĪBIŅA-EGNERE, Latvia
- Thierry MARIANI, France
- Lesia OROBETS, Ukraine
- Socialist Group (SOC)
- Bernadette BOURZAI, France
- Josette DURRIEU, France
- Florin IORDACHE, Romania
- Luc RECORDON, Switzerland
- Alexandrs SAKOVSKIS, Latvia
- John TOMLINSON*, United Kingdom
- Gisela WURM, Austria
- European Democrat Group (EDG)
- Christopher CHOPE, United Kingdom
- Jonathan EVANS, United Kingdom
- Yuliya L’OVOCHKINA, Ukraine
- Alliance of Liberals and Democrats
for Europe (ALDE)
- Gerold
BÜCHEL, Liechtenstein
- Doris FIALA, Switzerland
- Andrea RIGONI, Italy
- Rapporteur of the Monitoring
Committee (ex officio)
- Venice Commission
- Oliver KASK, Member of the Venice
Commission
- Secretariat
- Chemavon CHAHBAZIAN, Deputy
Head of Secretariat, Interparliamentary Co-operation and Election
Observation Division, Secretariat of the Parliamentary Assembly
- Gaël MARTIN-MICALLEF, Administrator, Venice Commission
- Franck DAESCHLER, Principal Administrative Assistant,
Interparliamentary Co-operation and Election Observation Division
- Anne GODFREY, Assistant, Interparliamentary Co-operation
and Election Observation Division
* Pre-electoral mission (24-25
September 2013)
Appendix 2 – Programme of
the pre-electoral mission (24-25 September 2013)
(open)
Tuesday,
24 September 2013
09:00-09:45 Delegation meeting and briefing by Ms Caterina
Bolognese, Head of the Council of Europe Office in Georgia
10:00-11:00 Meeting with representatives of civil society
organisations:
- Ms Nino Janashia,
Lawyer, ISFED
- Ms Lela Taliuri, GYLA
- Mr Arnold Stepanyan, Chairman, PMMG
11:00-12:00 Meeting with media representatives/experts
- Ms Tamar Rukhadze, Executive
Director, Georgian Charter of Journalistic Ethics
- Mr Zviad Koridze, Media Expert
- Mr Lasha Tughushi, Editor, Rezonansi newspaper,
initiator of the media law reform package
- Mr Emzar Goguadze, Chair of the Board of the Georgian
Public Broadcaster
- Ms Natia Kuprashvili, Executive Director, Georgian Association
of Regional Broadcasters
12:00-13:00 Meeting with a group of Tbilisi-based Ambassadors:
- Ambassador Priit Turk (Estonia)
- Mr Boris Iaroshevich, Deputy Head of the European Union
Delegation
- Ms Bridget Brink, Deputy Chief of the US Mission,
- Ambassador Elita Gavele (Latvia)
15:00-16:00 Meeting with Matteo Mecacci, Head of the OSCE/ODIHR
Election Observation Mission, together with:
- Mr Pascale Roussy, Political
Analyst
- Ms Elissavet Karagianidou, Legal Analyst
- Ms Kseniya Dashutina, Campaign Finance Analyst
- Ms Vania Anguelova, Election Analyst
- Mr Egor Tilpunov, Media Analyst
16:15-17:00 Meeting with Ms Tamar Zhvania, Chair of the Central
Electoral Commission
17:15-18:00 Meeting with Mr Bidzina Ivanishvili, Prime Minister
18:15-19:00 Meeting with Mr David Usupashvili, Chairman of
the Parliament
19:30 Working Dinner with ambassadors hosted by the Latvian
Ambassador to Georgia, H.E. Ms Elita Gavele
Wednesday, 25 September 2013
Meetings with presidential candidates:
09:00-09:30 Mr David Bakradze (United National Movement)
09:30-10:00 Ms Nino Burjanadze (Democratic Movement – United
Georgia)
10:00-10:30 Mr Giorgi Margvelashvili (Coalition “Georgian
Dream”)
10:30-11:15 Mr Shalva Natelashvili (Labour Party)
11:20-11:50 Mr Giorgi Targamadze (Christian Democratic Movement)
12:00-13:00 Meeting of the delegation
15:00 Meeting with Ms Tamar Taliashvili, Head of Administration
of the Ministry of Internal Affairs
16:00-16:45 Meeting with Mr Zurab Kharatishvili, presidential
candidate, former Chair of the CEC
17:00-17:45 Meeting with Mr Giorgi Bokeria, Secretary of
the National Security Council of Georgia
18:30-19:15 Meeting with Ms Tea Tsulukiani, Minister of Justice,
Chair of the Inter-Agency Task Force on Free and Fair Elections
19:30-20:00 Meeting of the delegation and preparation of
the press conference
20:00 Press conference
21:00-22:00 Working dinner hosted by the Head of Georgian
Delegation to PACE, Mr Tedo Japaridze, and the Prime Minister’s
Special Envoy for Relations with Russia, Mr Zurab Abashidze
Appendix 3 – Statement by
the pre-electoral mission
(open)
Strasbourg, 25.09.2013 – The pre-electoral
delegation of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE),
ending a two-day visit to Georgia, noted that there was currently
a more open, and equally competitive, electoral environment compared
to other recent elections. Georgia has the possibility to conduct a
Presidential election which enjoys its citizens’ confidence and
meets Council of Europe standards, the delegation said. This would
be a remarkable achievement for the country and the region.
To achieve this, cases of politically-motivated violence and
intimidation of opposition supporters, pressure on officials to
resign prematurely from their elected or appointed positions, and
undue interference of local officials in the election process must
be excluded during the election campaign. The relevant authorities
should investigate any allegations of election campaign violations,
firm and proportional sanctions should be applied in order to avoid
violations in the future, and the public should be informed about
measures undertaken.
The delegation noted with satisfaction the consensus between
the main political stakeholders concerning the recent amendments
to the election legislation and the Law on Political Unions of Citizens
adopted by Parliament in July and August 2013. It is now essential
to implement the amended legislation in an efficient manner, namely
banning the use of administrative resources, ensuring the accuracy
of voters’ lists, the transparency and control of sources of funding
and expenditures by political parties and candidates.
The delegation was informed of cases of intolerance toward
minorities. In this regard, it finds any political exploitation
of sensitive ethnic and religious issues for electoral purposes
unacceptable, all the more so in a multi-ethnic society such as
Georgia.
The delegation also noted the competent work of the Central
Election Commission. Further improvements in the legislation are
needed to increase political parties’ representation at all levels
of election commissions.
The delegation regrets the conflictual situation around the
Georgian Public Broadcaster. It encourages debates to be held between
the presidential candidates.
The delegation held meetings in Tbilisi from 24 to 25 September
2013 at the invitation of the Speaker of Parliament. It met with
the main Presidential candidates, the Prime Minister, the Speaker
of Parliament, the Chairperson of the Central Electoral Commission,
the Justice Minister and the Secretary of the National Security
Council, as well NGOs, the media and members of the diplomatic corps.
A full PACE observer delegation of 32 members will be back on 27
October.
Appendix 4 – Programme of
the meetings of electoral observation mission (25-28 October 2013)
(open)
Friday, 25 October
2013
|
Time
|
Event
|
|
09:00-10:00
|
PACE ad hoc committee
meeting:
Briefing on the pre-electoral mission by
Ms Meritxell Mateu Pi, Head of the Delegation
Briefing
by other members of the pre-electoral mission
Briefing
by Ms Caterina Bolognese, Head of the Council of Europe office in
Tbilisi
Recent developments in the field of election
legislation, Secretariat of the Venice Commission
Practical
and logistical arrangements, Secretariat
|
|
10:30-11:00
|
Opening by the heads
of parliamentary delegations
Mr João Soares, Special
Coordinator of the OSCE short-term observer mission
Ms
Meritxell Mateu Pi, Head of the PACE Delegation
Mr
Krzysztof Lisek, Head of Delegation of the European Parliament
Mr
Mati Raidma, Head of Delegation of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly
Mr
Ilkka Kanerva, Head of Delegation of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly
|
|
11:00-13:00
|
OSCE/ODIHR Election Observation
Mission Core Team
Findings of long-term observers
and core team
11:00-11:20 – Mr Matteo Mecacci, Head
of the OSCE long-term mission
11:20-11:40 – Ms Pascale
Roussy, Political Analyst
11:40-12:00 – Ms Elissavet
Karagianidou, Legal Analyst
12:00-12:20 – Ms Kseniya
Dashutina, Campaign Finance Analyst
12:20-12:40 –
Mr Yegor Tilpunov, Media Analyst
12:40-12:45 – Mr
Robin Seaword, Security Expert
Questions
|
|
14:30-15:15
|
Electoral Administration
Ms
Tamar Zhvania, Chair of the Central Electoral Commission
|
|
15:15-16:00
|
Round table
Ms
Tea Tsulukiani, Minister of Justice, Head of the Inter-Agency Commission
for Fair and Free Elections
Mr Levan Samadashvili,
Chairman of the State Service Development Agency
Mr
Zurab Aznaurashvili, Head of Political Parties Financial Monitoring
Service, State Audit Office of Georgia
|
|
16:00-17:00
|
Round table with Georgian
observer organisations:
Ms Nino Lomjaria, Executive
Director, International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy (ISFED)
Mr
Kakha Kojoridze, Chairperson, Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association
(GYLA)
Ms Eka Gigauri, Executive Director, Transparency
International Georgia
Mr Arnold Stepanian, Chairperson,
Public Movement Multinational Georgia
|
|
17:00-18:00
|
Round table with international
NGO representatives:
Mr Luis Navarro, Country Director,
National Democratic Institute
Ms Andrea Keerbs, Resident
County Director, International Republican Institute
Mr
Nermin Nišić, Chief of Party, International Foundation for Electoral
Systems
|
|
18:00-19:00
|
Round table with media
representatives:
Ms Sopo Mosidze, Head of News Department
and Mr Goga Chartolani, Deputy Director General, Georgian Public
Broadcaster
Mr Nikolos Gvaramia, Director General,
TV Rustavi 2
Ms Baia Tsanava, Head of News Department,
TV Imedi
Ms Mariam Kobaladze, Researcher, Caucasus
Research Resource Centres (CRRC)
Mr Mathias Hutter,
Senior Media Analyst, Transparency International
Mr
Zviad Koridze, Media Expert
Ms Ia Antadze, Media
Expert
Ms Tamar Gergoleishvili, Editor in Chief,
magazine Tabula
|
Saturday, 26 October 2013
|
10:00-13:00
|
Meetings with presidential
candidates:
10:00-10:30 Mr Davit Bakradze, United
National Movement
10:30- 1:00 Mr Giorgi Targamadze,
Christian-Democratic Movement
11:00-11:30 Ms Nino
Burjanadze, Democratic Movement-United Georgia
12:00-12:30
Mr Shalva Natelashvili, Labour Party of Georgia
12:30-13:00
Mr Giorgi Margvelashvili, Presidential Candidate, Georgian Dream
coalition
|
|
13:00-13:45
|
Briefing by the OSCE/ODIHR
Election Observation Mission – Part II
Observation
forms and election day procedures
Ms Vania Anguelova,
Election Analyst, training video and presentation
Mr
Anders Eriksson, Statistical Analyst and introduction to forms
Questions and answers
|
|
13:45
14:15
|
Deployment
Area
specific briefing conducted by OSCE/ODIHR election observation mission
long-term observer teams 1/2
Meeting with interpreters
and drivers
|
Sunday, 27 October 2013
|
All day
|
Observation of opening,
voting and vote count
|
Monday, 28 October 2013
|
08:00-09:00
|
Debriefing of parliamentary
delegations
|
|
09:30-10:30
|
Meeting of heads of parliamentary
delegations
|
|
14:00
|
Press conference
|
Appendix 5 – Press release
of the International Election Observation Mission
(open)
Fundamental freedoms
respected in well-administered presidential election in Georgia,
international observers say
Strasbourg, 28.10.2013 – The 27 October presidential election
in Georgia was efficiently administered, transparent and took place
in an amicable and constructive environment, the international observers
concluded in a preliminary statement released today. Fundamental
freedoms of expression, movement and assembly were respected, and
candidates were able to campaign without restriction. “In a positive
and transparent election, the Georgian people have confirmed last
year’s historic transfer of power,” said João Soares, the Special
Co-ordinator who led the short-term OSCE observer mission. “This
clean election following a political cohabitation tells me that
Georgia’s democracy is maturing.” Twenty-three candidates were registered
by the Central Election Commission (CEC) in a transparent and inclusive
manner. Although less polarized, personality politics continued
to dominate the public debate throughout the campaign, the statement
says.
The CEC managed the preparations for the election in a professional,
transparent and timely manner, and there was a high degree of confidence
in its work, the observers conclude. CEC sessions and meetings were open
to observers, non-governmental organizations and the media. “Just
one year after the parliamentary elections, Georgia’s citizens have
again demonstrated their political maturity in this presidential
election, in a peaceful climate and with an inclusive process, thanks
to the election administration. These elections are an important
achievement for the country and for the entire South Caucasus region.
Apart from this, we feel that it is a pity that two Russian members
of our delegation were not able to participate in this mission,”
said Meritxell Mateu Pi, Head of the PACE delegation. “The Parliamentary
Assembly remains ready to assist the Georgian authorities in consolidating
the democratic process in this country.”A wide range of views and
information was made available to voters through the media, providing
candidates with a platform to present their programmes and opinions
freely. Even though free airtime was guaranteed only to those candidates
who qualified for it, the main media outlets covered all major contestants
in a balanced manner, the statement says.
The legal framework is comprehensive and provides a sound
legal basis for the conduct of democratic elections, and the majority
of previous ODIHR recommendations were addressed in amendments introduced since
the last election. However, several provisions of the Election Code
remain unclear and were not applied in a consistent manner. “Yesterday’s
election demonstrated the Georgian people’s commitment to the democratic
process. That process was conducted professionally and transparently
in an amicable and constructive environment,” said Mati Raidma,
Head of the NATO PA delegation. “Essentially, what we observed yesterday
was a European election.” Civil society and citizen observer organizations
undertook a number of activities to support the electoral process
and monitor the elections. The involvement of a large number of
citizen observers and groups throughout the electoral process enhanced
transparency, the observers conclude.
