Parliament official says European Court of Human Rights’s decision indicates Georgian judiciary has been reformed, on right path of development

Irakli Zarkua, the Chair of the Parliamentary Committee on Diaspora and Caucasus Issues, on Friday said that the latest decision by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in the case “Pirtskhalava v. Georgia” was another proof that the Georgian judiciary operated at a high standard.

Zarkua’s remarks came after the European Court of Human Rights on Thursday declared inadmissible the complaints submitted over the independence and impartiality of the judges of the Supreme Court of Georgia. The Court upheld the legal position of the Georgian Ministry of Justice, supported by relevant evidence, and rejected the complaints in the cases Pirtskhalava and Y against Georgia and Goginashvili against Georgia.

In his remarks, Zarkua noted that this decision once again indicated that the Georgian judiciary had been reformed and was on the right path of development.

“The lawsuit related to [Buta] Robakidze's issue was not even considered at all. For all the high-profile issues that once concerned Rustavi 2 [TV channel], [opposition leader] Nika Gvaramia, and [imprisoned former President Mikheil] Saakashvili, the European Court of Human Rights upheld the decision made by the Georgian judicial system. This once again indicates that our court has been reformed, our court is on the right path of development. Naturally, there are challenges and there will always be reform in relation to these challenges. So, once again, it is welcome that the European Court of Human Rights is repeating the decision made by the Georgian court one by one”, Zarkua said.

In complaints, the applicants alleged that one of the Supreme Court judges who examined their cases was biased. Additionally, Pirtskhalava and Y argued that the Judge had not been appointed in accordance with the law.

The European Court accepted the Ministry of Justice’s arguments and declared all three complaints concerning judicial impartiality inadmissible. In its decision, the Court reviewed the reforms undertaken by the Georgian authorities since 2012 to strengthen the justice system.