Pre-emptive remarks on high international platforms about courts could be seen as interference, warns Tbilisi City Assembly’s Nino Vardosanidze

Nino Vardosanidze, Chair of the Legal Affairs and Human Rights Committee of Tbilisi City Assembly and Head of the Georgian delegation, took part in the 51st Session of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg.

The Georgian delegation, composed of members from the ruling Georgian Dream party, is in its second day of participating in plenary sessions, committee hearings, and working groups to state the government’s stance on domestic matters.

According to the Tbilisi City Assembly, although Georgia was not formally on the session’s agenda, a speaker raised a question regarding the current political situation in the country. In response, Alain Berset, Secretary General of the Council of Europe, highlighted the importance of preserving political pluralism and noted that any prospective ban on opposition parties could ultimately be brought before the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).

Vardosanidze responded to these remarks, clarifying that while the Georgian delegation sought to address the floor directly, procedural constraints prevented them from intervening during the session.

“Although we requested the floor, the constraints of the meeting format meant we were unable to pursue the debate further in the hall. However, we have utilised every other available avenue to share our assessment and present Georgia’s official position,” Vardosanidze stated.

She cautioned that premature pronouncements from prominent international platforms regarding potential party bans risk being perceived as undue pressure or interference in judicial proceedings, thereby running counter to the fundamental principle of the rule of law.