Georgia's freedom fighters have one last chance to fight authoritarianism – but they need the support of the ECHR

Since an appeal against an anti-European law before the Georgian Constitutional Court is likely to be futile, civil society should turn to the European Court of Human Rights.

With Georgia’s freedom hanging by a thread, Georgian civil society and non-governmental organisations must urgently seek the support of European institutions such as the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).

But now that the controversial law to protect foreign agents has come into force and parliamentary elections are imminent, their window of opportunity to protect civil society from the consolidation of an authoritarian regime is rapidly closing.

The “foreign agent” law was hard to miss. It was pushed through by the ruling Georgian Dream party and sparked mass protests across the country earlier this year.

The bill requires organizations that receive more than 20 percent of their funding from abroad to register as “pursuing the interests of a foreign power.” This is problematic because the bill could easily be used to suppress civil society and crack down on opposition voices, which is exactly how a similar law has been used in Russia.

Given the Russia-like rhetoric of the Georgian Dream representatives, it is no wonder that the bill is being criticized for its Russia-like design. Georgians, all too familiar with Russian oppression, saw the signs of the times and took to the streets en masse to protest. In true authoritarian fashion, the freedom fighters were violently suppressed by the regime's “masked cowards,” the riot police deployed to maintain public order.

Despite protests, diplomatic pressure, sanctions, frozen EU funding and a presidential veto, the bill came into force on 1 August, threatening the important work of civil society organisations and non-governmental organisations in exposing alleged corruption, conflicts of interest and poor governance. With elections approaching, it is clear that the bill is politically motivated.

On July 17, Georgian Dream announced the slogan for its upcoming election campaign: “To Europe only with peace, dignity and prosperity.” After ruthlessly sabotaging the country’s Euro-Atlantic integration, this is beyond shameless, even for former Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili, Georgia’s “billionaire puppet master,” and his clan.

Their actions have undermined Georgia's EU ambitions and raises the question of whether and how the Georgian Dream intends to repair Tbilisi's relations with Brussels.

A challenge without perspective

For this reason, President Salome Zurabishvili, 121 Georgian civil society organizations and media outlets, and 32 opposition MPs decided to challenge the law on foreign agents before the country's Constitutional Court.

According to Article 78 of the Georgian Constitution, the constitutional bodies shall take all measures within their competence to ensure the full integration of Georgia into the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

Since Georgian Dream does the opposite, one might think that the victory of the president and her co-signers is a foregone conclusion. But unfortunately, thanks to Georgian Dream, things that should be straightforward rarely are.

Ivanishvili's staunch ally, current Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, said President Zurabishvili's lawsuit “will have no prospects.” He said this not because there is no legal basis for it, but because he knows that the judicial system is actually under the control of the “clan.”

This influential group of judges is known to have made a pact with the Georgian Dream authorities to decide important court cases in favor of the ruling party in return for personal benefits. It is safe to assume that none of the domestic court cases will lead to a result and that they will drag on until after the elections.

The role of the ECHR

Therefore, the freedom fighters who file these lawsuits must turn their attention instead to the European Court of Human Rights.

In general, applicants must exhaust all domestic remedies before bringing a case before the ECHR. However, given the ample evidence of judicial corruption in Georgia and the well-documented intimidation of independent journalists and activists, there is a solid basis for requesting an exemption. After all, the ECHR has granted such exemptions before. If it is truly concerned about upholding democracy and the rule of law, this should be a no-brainer.

In the meantime, freedom fighters can invoke Article 39 of the ECHR to request a temporary stay of enforcement of the Foreign Agents Act. This legal mechanism allows the ECHR to impose urgent interim measures in situations where there is “an imminent threat of irreparable harm.” Given the undeniable potential for lasting harm to Georgia’s civil society and democratic institutions, Article 39 would be more than justified.

Quick action is required. The law has only just come into force, there is no time to lose – and everything to lose.

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