Georgian Parliament Speaker: everyone entitled to express protest, but not at the expense of other people’s rights

The planned amendments to Georgia’s Law on Assemblies and Demonstrations fully comply with both constitutional standards and the case law of the European Court of Human Rights, and therefore contain no legal shortcomings, the Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Tuesday said in response to questions regarding the proposed changes.

In his remarks, Papuashvili stressed that “everyone has the right to express protest, but this must not come at the expense of other people’s rights”.

“Regarding the substance of the bill: if a gathering obstructs citizens’ freedom of movement, the police will have the authority to redirect them. The same principle applies to motorists - drivers should not experience unnecessary discomfort when there is not a sufficient number of protesters to justify blocking a road. This also applies to pedestrians’ rights. If the number of protesters is not sufficient, they should not impede the movement of other citizens”, the Speaker said.

“We all agree that 50 people should not be able to shut down a street. It is good that this has finally been clearly regulated. Unfortunately, it became necessary to introduce stricter sanctions for radical groups that refused to comply and used procedural tricks to delay paying fines. The issue is simple: anyone can express protest, but it must not happen at the expense of others’ rights”, Papuashvili concluded.