Thank you Madam Chair.
I have the honour to deliver the Joint Statement by Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada, Croatia, Czechia, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Luxemburg, Montenegro, Malta, Moldova, the Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, and my own country, Lithuania, on recent developments concerning the human rights situation in Georgia.
As OSCE participating States, we have committed to upholding and defending fundamental human rights, democracy and the rule of law across our shared OSCE region. It is in this spirit that we express again our deep and unchanged concern over the human rights situation in Georgia.
We regret that our concerns indicated in our previous communications have gone unacknowledged and that the Georgian authorities have not taken steps against the deteriorating human rights situation, which is in contradiction with Georgia’s OSCE commitments and human rights, democratic norms and values.
The upcoming municipal elections in October in Georgia will be held in a climate of heavy political polarization and in a context of growing repression against authorities’ critics, with several opposition leaders being imprisoned. The recent amendments to Georgia’s electoral legislation raise concerns about the integrity of the elections, particularly regarding transparency and public trust. Monitoring of the local elections is particularly needed in this context, as reminded publicly by ODIHR on 7 July 2025. Therefore, it is regrettable that no timely invitation has been sent to ODIHR to allow for meaningful observation. This break with Georgia’s longstanding practice is deeply worrying.
Furthermore, the repression against citizens, political opposition, civil society and independent journalists continues. We reiterate our call to the Georgian authorities to investigate all allegations of excessive use of force by law enforcement officials and to hold to account those responsible. We strongly condemn the disproportionate sentencing of Mzia Amaglobeli, a prominent Georgian journalist, to two years in prison, and the latest prison sentences against several protestors. We call on the Georgian authorities to immediately release all those unjustly detained and we stress the need to uphold the independence of the judiciary and to ensure the right to a fair trial.
We urge the Georgian authorities to reaffirm their commitment to dialogue and the OSCE principles and commitments. We also call on Georgian authorities to open an inclusive national dialogue with all relevant stakeholders to find a peaceful and democratic solution to the ongoing crisis. The assistance of OSCE institutions such as ODIHR and RFOM may be particularly relevant to that matter. There remains an opportunity to shift course.
Finally we stand firmly with Georgia’s people and their pursuit of a democratic, stable and European future, with a vibrant civil society as the backbone of democratic pluralism and accountability. We remain open to cooperate with Georgia and unwaveringly committed to its sovereignty and territorial integrity, within its internationally recognized borders.
Thank you Madam Chair.
