The European Network of Election Monitoring Organizations (ENEMO) strongly condemns the recent actions taken against the International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy (ISFED), a long-standing and respected member of ENEMO, and one of Georgia’s leading nonpartisan citizen observer organizations.
“At the request of the Prosecutor’s Office, a Tbilisi City Court judge froze the bank accounts of ISFED and several other civil society organizations. These actions represent a severe attempt to obstruct the legitimate work of independent election monitors ahead of the upcoming local government elections. Such measures threaten the transparency and accountability of the electoral process, and undermine public confidence in Georgia’s democratic institutions.
ISFED has played a vital role for decades in ensuring free and fair elections through professional, impartial and independent monitoring. Targeting ISFED and other civil society organizations with repressive measures not only undermines their work, but also runs counter to Georgia’s constitutional guarantees and its international obligations to safeguard fundamental rights and freedoms, including the freedom of association.
ENEMO recalls that credible elections cannot take place without the presence of impartial citizen observers who ensure accountability, document violations, and reinforce public trust in the process. Any attempt to restrict their activities directly jeopardizes the integrity of elections and the democratic choice of Georgian citizens.
ENEMO has previously conducted international election observation missions in Georgia, and therefore knows firsthand the crucial role that citizen observer organizations such as ISFED play in ensuring transparency and integrity of the electoral process.
ENEMO calls on the Georgian authorities to immediately lift the restrictive measures imposed against ISFED and other affected civil society organizations, and to refrain from further actions that would impede their legitimate work. We urge the authorities to respect Georgia’s own Constitution and international human rights commitments, and to create an enabling environment in which election observers can carry out their mandate without intimidation, reprisals or undue restrictions.
ENEMO further expresses its full solidarity with ISFED and the Georgian civil sector, commending their continued commitment to transparency and accountability despite the hostile environment caused by the Government of Georgia and rulling party Georgian Dream’s actions”, reads the statement.
ENEMO calls on Georgian authorities to immediately lift the restrictive measures imposed against civil society organizations, and to refrain from further actions that would impede their legitimate work
