30 Amendments of Ilhan KYUCHYUK related to 2019/2200(INI)
Amendment 17 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. Expresses concerns over continuous political polarization and the lack of effective political dialogue in Georgia, which necessitated facilitation by the Head of the EU Delegation in Tbilisi to reach the Memorandum of Understanding of 8 March 2020, and the negative effect such political division may have on reforms related to the AA and DCFTA implementation;
Amendment 20 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Reiterates its full support for Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders and condemns the illegal occupation of the Georgian regions of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali/South Ossetia by the Russian Federation, as well as ongoing illegal borderisation along the dividing lines, which escalate the situation, damage the security environment and cause further hardships to the local population, including abductions of Georgian citizens from unoccupied Georgian territory; emphasises that the AA covers the entire territory of Georgia, including its occupied regions, and aims to benefit its whole population; calls on the Russian Federation to fulfil its obligations under the EU- mediated ceasefire agreement of 12 August 2008, notably to withdraw all its military forces from Georgia’s occupied territories and allow the European Union Monitoring Mission (EUMM) unhindered access to the whole territory of Georgia; asks the Commission and the EEAS to enhance their efforts to resolve the conflict peacefully, including through the EUMM and the EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus and the crisis in Georgia;
Amendment 29 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Condemns the continuing illegal "borderisation" in Russian-occupied Georgian territory of South Ossetia and stresses that these actions of violations of international law need to be stopped;
Amendment 38 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Amendment 40 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 b (new)
Paragraph 3 b (new)
3b. Welcomes actions taken by Georgian authorities, institutions and the civil society to flatten the curve and to manage the effect of the COVID-19 crisis; encourages further investments into improving the quality of care and reducing inequalities in the healthcare system;
Amendment 41 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 c (new)
Paragraph 3 c (new)
3c. Encourages the Georgian authorities to show leadership in fostering neighbourly relations and cooperation among the South Caucasus countries and supports such efforts;
Amendment 48 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Commends the Georgian authoriefforts by the major Georgian political parties forto completinge the constitutional reform process and the major political parties for, particularly the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding of 8 March 2020, which established the key features of the electoral system to be used for the upcoming parliamentary elections;October 2020 parliamentary elections; however, expresses deep concerns over attempts by the ruling party to avoid implementation of the agreement to its full extent, welcomes the input made by the President of Georgia to ensure its undivided application and calls on all parties to ensure that the agreement is translated into law and fully implemented as soon as possible;
Amendment 50 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Commends the Georgian authorities for completing the constitutional reform process and the major political parties for signing the Memorandum of UnderstandingWelcomes the pardoning of European Georgia party Secretary- General Gigi Ugulava by President of Georgia as an important step towards the full implementation of the internationally- mediated Agreement between the Georgian Government and opposition of 8 March 2020, which included the establishedment of the key features of the electoral system to be used for the upcoming parliamentary elections and elimination of political interference into justice system; calls on all parties to ensure that the agreement is translated into law and fully implemented as soon as possible;
Amendment 55 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. Stresses the need for the parliamentary elections in 2020 to be free and fair;
Amendment 56 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. Notes that the upcoming parliamentary elections will be pivotal in confirming Georgia’s democratic credentials;
Amendment 58 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Calls on the Georgian authorities to implement swiftly and fully the OSCE/ODIHR recommendations and review relevant legislation to address the identified shortcomings; ensure that concerns enumerated in the OSCE/ODIHR and other legitimate election observation reports, particularly related to the use of public resources for political campaigning, impunity of violence, vote-buying as well as the ability of voters, especially civil servants, “to vote free from pressure and fear of retribution” are eliminated;
Amendment 65 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5a. Encourages the Georgian authorities and the Election Administration of Georgia to ensure safe environment for the October 2020 parliamentary elections by providing protective personal equipment for election personnel, adjusting the voting facilities to guarantee health and safety of participating citizens and ensuring undisturbed work of the election observers;
Amendment 71 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6a. Notes the importance to ensure editorial independence and pluralistic opinions in Georgian Public Broadcaster and Adjara Public Broadcaster and to eliminate cases of political persecution against media owners and managers in order to ensure a fair and free environment for media outlets and journalists, in which they could carry their duties in adherence to the internationally accepted professional standards and would enjoy timely and equal access to all public information;
Amendment 82 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Expresses its concern about recent court cases against opposition politicians and media owners, which contributed to a climate of increased mistrust and heightened tensions between the ruling party and the opposition, and led to a polarisation of politics and society; calls for the release of Giorgi Rurua, an independent media owner and entrepreneur, as part of the Memorandum of Understanding of 8 March 2020; calls on Georgia to respect the highest standards of judicial independence and fair trial as committed to under the AA;
Amendment 84 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Expresses its concern about recent court cases against opposition politicians, which contributed to a climate of increased mistrust and heightened tensions between the ruling party and the opposition, and led to a polarisation of politics and society; calls for the release of the remaining political prisoners; calls on Georgia to respect the highest standards of judicial independence and fair trial as committed to under the AA;
Amendment 93 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Calls for a revision of the selection procedures for judges to be carried out to ensure that the recommendations of the Venice Commission and the OSCE/ODIHR are fully implemented before any new appointments are made; regrets that the recent selection procedure of Supreme Court judges suffered from serious shortcomings;
Amendment 101 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Strongly condemns the cyber- attacks against Georgian institutions and media outlets widely attributed to Russian actors; takes note with concern that in December 2019 and May 2020 hundreds of coordinated inauthentic pages and profiles sponsored by the ruling party, spreading criticism of the opposition and local activist organizations were removed by Facebook and calls on all political actors in Georgia to refrain from using social media to attack people, organisations and institutions and spread deliberate misinformation; encourages to review relevant legislation to protect the personal data of Internet users from, inter alia, secret surveillance;
Amendment 105 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Strongly condemns the cyber- attacks against Georgian institutions and media outlets widely attributed to Russian actors and the intensifying disinformation campaigns; calls on all political actors in Georgia to refrain from using social media to attack people, organisations and institutions and spread deliberate misinformation;
Amendment 113 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Deplores the constant violations by the Russian Federation, which exercises de facto control of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali/South Ossetia regions, of the fundamental rights of the people in these occupied regions, who are being deprived of the freedom of movement and residence, the right to property and the right of access to education in the native language, and reiterates its full support for the right of return of internally displaced persons; is concerned that the restriction of the freedom of movement is depriving people of access to necessary medical services thereby endangering their lives;
Amendment 115 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 a (new)
Paragraph 10 a (new)
10a. Deplores any actions to limit freedom of thought and assembly, actions to instigate violence among peaceful protesters and the use of force against citizens exercising their right to freedom of thought and assembly;
Amendment 120 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Underlines that gender equality is a key precondition to sustainable and inclusive development; calls for the Georgian Authorities to take further steps to uphold fundamental freedoms and human rights, notably for vulnerable groups, by fighting hate speech and discrimination against LGBTQI people, Roma people and other minorities; commends the work of the Georgian Parliament’s Gender Equality Council and its efforts to identify sexual harassment as a form of discrimination;
Amendment 122 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Underlines that gender equality is a key precondition to sustainable and inclusive development; commends the work of the Georgian Parliament’s Gender Equality Council and its efforts to identify sexual harassment as a form of discrimination; calls for a full implementation of the Istanbul Convention;
Amendment 125 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12
Paragraph 12
12. Welcomes the work of the Human Rights Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and insists that the existing human rights and anti-discrimination legislation must be thoroughly and efficiently implemented; calls upon the Georgian leadership, the Church, the civil society and other relevant groups to foster an environment for dialogue and cooperation in order to eradicate all forms of discrimination, hate speech and physical violence against minorities and vulnerable groups;
Amendment 129 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 a (new)
Paragraph 12 a (new)
12a. Calls upon the Georgian Orthodox Church to play a more unifying role within society, particularly on the matters related to human rights and fundamental freedoms;
Amendment 135 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Underlines the importance of improving the political culture in Georgia and of reducing antagonism and the polarisation of politics, and ensuring constructive cooperation in the country’s democratic institutions, in particular the parliament; therefore profoundly regrets that the ninth meeting of the EU-Georgia Parliamentary Association Committee of 12 and13 February 2020 in Strasbourg ended without an agreement on a final statement and recommendations being reached;
Amendment 138 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14 a (new)
Paragraph 14 a (new)
14a. Calls on the Parliament of Georgia to strengthen its capacities to exercise the parliamentary control mechanisms, particularly control over the security system; encourages to increase the role of the opposition in the process of parliamentary oversight, to simplify the procedures for summoning members of the government and other accountable officials and establishing a centralized recording system to provide timely and complete information on parliamentary control to all interested stakeholders;
Amendment 139 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14 b (new)
Paragraph 14 b (new)
Amendment 144 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Notes with satisfaction that the EU is one of Georgia’s largest trading partners; welcomes the continued approximation of Georgia’s legislation in trade-related areas; encourages Georgia to take a full advantage of trade opportunities, particularly of DCFTA, and to develop its export capacities beyond agricultural commodities and raw materials;
Amendment 147 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15 a (new)
Paragraph 15 a (new)
15a. Underlines the importance of structural reforms aimed to further advance the investment climate in Georgia, particularly investor protection guarantees and their implementation; regrets that the Anaklia Deep Sea Port Project failed to secure required investments and encourages Georgian authorities to improve the environment for the attracting foreign direct investment, including capacities of responsible institutions and political support and unity over projects of national strategic importance;
Amendment 157 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. Welcomes the allocation by the Commission of EUR 3.4 billion for 18 priority projects in Georgia under the indicative trans-European transport network (TEN-T) investment action plan; notes that all infrastructure development projects need to be accompanied by a sound assessment of the environmental impact and of the effects on local communities;