The co-rapporteurs of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) for the monitoring of Georgia, Titus Corlățean (Romania, SOC) and Claude Kern (France, ALDE), released a statement on December 13, saying the decision of the Georgian Parliament to appoint 14 judges to the Supreme Court, “against the recommendation of the international community, including the Assembly,” “can only be deplored.”

The statement reads that during their visit to Georgia in September, the Co-rapporteurs communicated their “serious concerns” about “opaque and deficient” selection process of the candidates, and expressed their expectation that “the parliament would rectify the shortcomings in the selection process, including by appointing only the minimum number of judges needed to ensure the proper functioning of the Supreme Court.”

They further pointed out that the Parliament made the decision “without proper reasoning and reportedly including persons who have not demonstrated during the selection process that they have the legal knowledge and independence required for such an important position.”

The Co-rapporteurs called for “swift measures to ensure the required public trust in the justice system and the independence of the judiciary.”
On December 12, the Parliament of Georgia approved 14 judges of the Supreme Court, including Prosecutor-General Shalva Tadumadze (with 89 votes), Deputy Prosecutor General Mamuka Vasadze (with 88 votes) and Secretary of the Supreme Council of Justice Giorgi Mikautadze (with 85 votes).

Georgia currently holds the 6-month rotating presidency of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe.