The leader of the Georgian Dream, Mamuka Mdinaradze, said at a briefing today that they plan to tighten a number of regulations, both in the Administrative Offenses and Criminal Codes, which will further restrict citizens’ freedom of expression.
According to him, holding a rally in closed spaces and buildings without the prior consent of the owner is prohibited, the maximum term of administrative detention is increased to 60 days, and strict sanctions will be imposed for verbal abuse of persons employed in public institutions.
It is worth noting that the National Movement adopted an amendment on July 17, 2009, which increased the term of administrative detention three times and set it at 90 days. In 2014, the Georgian Dream reduced the term of administrative detention to 15 days, and now it has increased this term four times and is set at 60 days.
Mamuka Mdinaradze stated that fines for petty hooliganism, vandalism, disobedience to the requests of law enforcement officers, insulting them, blocking court entrances, and other similar administrative violations are increasing.
According to international standards, a public figure has an obligation to be patient, and verbal abuse from citizens is subject to this standard, although the “Dream” announced that this will no longer be the case.
“A verbal insult to a state political associate or public servant in connection with their activities is defined as an administrative offense, for which strict sanctions are also defined,” Mdinaradze said.
The amendment, which increased the term of administrative detention from 30 days to 90 days, was introduced into the Code of Administrative Offenses on July 17, 2009.
According to Mdinaradze, a number of changes will also be made to the Criminal Code, which, he claims, is intended to “prevent fascist actions by pseudo-liberals.”
“In particular, public incitement to violence has so far been punishable only by a fine and community service. This crime is punishable by up to 3 years in prison; the term of criminal imprisonment for resisting, threatening, and using violence against police officers is being increased and will move to the category of serious crimes, from 5 to 6 years in this specific case; the sanction for attacking a police officer, government official, and their family members is also being tightened — in the case of a group, multiple attacks, or attacks using dangerous means, i.e. these specific circumstances will be aggravating,” Mdinaradze announced, adding that the punishment for harming a police officer’s health will also be increased, and “anyone who attacks or threatens to use violence against a political official, state employee, or public employee will also be punished under criminal law.”
Mdinaradze stated that the full package of legislative amendments also takes into account many other issues and focused only on the main ones. According to him, the initiative will be available on the parliament’s website from today. The “Dream” intends to adopt repressive laws independently. Neither international partners, nor a large part of citizens or civil society recognize the legitimacy of the parliament.
In parallel with the continuous protests that began in the post-election period, the “Dream” passed a series of repressive laws, which, among other things, banned the use of fireworks and lasers at protests, as well as wearing masks, and made blocking highways a criminal offense. With the now announced changes, the legislation will become even stricter.