CoE human rights chief urges Georgia to implement ECHR rulings on police abuse, assembly rights

Michael O’Flaherty, the Council of Europe’s (CoE) Commissioner for Human Rights, has called on Georgian authorities to fully implement European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) judgments concerning police ill-treatment and violations of peaceful assembly rights.

In two communications submitted to the Committee of Ministers, O’Flaherty addressed the Tsintsabadze v. Georgia and Makarashvili and Others v. Georgia cases, urging concrete reforms to ensure accountability and protect human rights in line with European standards.

The Tsintsabadze case group involves deaths, torture, and ill-treatment largely attributed to law enforcement and prison officials, along with failures to investigate these abuses effectively. O’Flaherty emphasized the need for visible police identification, independent investigations into misconduct, and reducing the Special Investigation Service’s (SSS) dependence on the Prosecutor’s Office. He also warned against recent legislative changes that risk undermining accountability, including a bill that would dissolve the SSS entirely.

Based on his January 2025 visit to Georgia, O’Flaherty highlighted concerns about excessive force used during recent pro-EU rallies, stating that law enforcement must adhere to legality, necessity, and proportionality principles when managing public assemblies.

In the Makarashvili and Others case, which stems from the dispersal of a peaceful protest in 2019, the ECHR found violations of the right to peaceful assembly and fair trial. O’Flaherty criticized Georgia’s ongoing use of arbitrary administrative detention and called for comprehensive reforms of the Code of Administrative Offences. He stressed the importance of meaningful consultations with civil society, better legal safeguards, and judicial oversight to prevent abuse.

The Commissioner urged the Georgian government to review restrictive amendments passed since November 2024 that expanded penalties for protest-related actions, including up to 60 days of detention, which he said disproportionately limit fundamental freedoms.