“My visit to Georgia is focused on engaging with civil society. It is so important that in any democracy, the people are given a choice,” said the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Finland’s Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen, during a joint press conference with Maka Botchorishvili at the Georgian Foreign Ministry.

As Valtonen noted, the OSCE appreciates Georgia’s continued engagement in the Geneva International Discussions (GID).

“ The OSCE appreciates Georgia’s continued engagement in the Geneva International Discussions and the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism. It is important to continue an active participation in the IPRM, which enables concrete action on border management. We see potential to do more on this related to climate adaptation and efficient border use.

The OSCE stands ready to offer expertise in cooperation with the EU Monitoring Mission (EUMM). Reconciliation and dealing with the past represent crucial elements in building peace for the future, and I encourage continued work in this area. I also raised our priority for inclusive mediation, including an engagement with civil society in all discussions aimed at conflict resolution,” Valtonen has stated.

According to Valtonen, civil society is not a threat to stability, and NGOs should be safeguarded.

“ During our meeting, I also repeated serious concerns of participating states of the OSCE and OSCE institutions on the current domestic situation in Georgia, including on restrictive legislation hampering the space for civil society, media professionals and journalists, and concerns related to democratic governance.

The latest developments regarding the freezing of NGOs’ accounts are of grave concern. We also strongly condemn the arrests of almost all opposition leaders and call for free, fair, and proportionate legal proceedings for all those arrested for exercising their freedom of expression and assembly.

Civil society is not a threat to stability, but quite the opposite. NGOs, human rights defenders, and journalists are the lifeblood of democratic resilience. They challenge injustice, drive innovation, and hold power to account. Their voices must not only be heard, they must be protected. That is why my visit to Georgia is focused on engaging with civil society. It is so important that in any democracy, the people are given a choice. So is the case with Georgia; it will be up to the Georgian people to decide what kind of government, and what kind of future they want for themselves.

But what comes to the OSCE, it comes with principles, and indeed, enshrined in the Helsinki Final Act are the ten Helsinki principles, and those do include sovereignty, territorial integrity, and the inviolability of borders, to which Georgia is totally entitled to; but the Georgian people are also entitled to those human rights, the freedom of expression, the freedom of political engagement, and all of those liberties, which are enshrined in those common principles.

The Georgian government needs to find a way out of this crisis and to restore public trust in its democratic institutions. The OSCE and its autonomous institutions stand ready to support Georgia in the implementation of relevant commitments on fundamental freedoms and the rule of law in line with the common principles going back to the Helsinki Final Act,” the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office has concluded.