AUG. 9 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — Georgian President Giorgi Margvelashvili blocked a petition calling for a referendum that sought to enshrine an outright ban on gay marriages in Georgia’s Constitution. Supporters of the petition had argued for a referendum on the issue to be held at the same time as a parliamentary election in October.
ENDS
Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 292, published on Aug. 12 2016)
JULY 11 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — Kyrgyzstan’s Central Election Commission unseated MP Jyrgalbek Samatov after proving he had used fake documents to lodge his candidacy for a parliamentary election in October last year. The government’s election watchdog found that Mr Samatov had not relinquished his double Russian-Kyrgyz citizenship ahead of the election, which made him automatically unelectable. Mr Samatov later said he would sue the Commission.
ENDS
Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 289, published on July 15 2016)
JUNE 27 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – Georgia’s justice minister, Tea Tsulukiani, reiterated that former president Mikheil Saakashvili would be arrested if he travelled to Georgia to campaign in a parliamentary election set for October. The Georgian government has put out arrest warrants for Mr Saakashvili connected to various financial crimes when he was in power between 2004 and 2013. Mr Saakashvili is currently governor of the Odessa region in Ukraine. He has said that he would like to return to Georgia ahead of the election.
ENDS
Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 287, published on July 1 2016)
JUNE 3 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — Perhaps with the Council of Europe’s criticism in mind, Georgia’s President Giorgi Margvelashvili sent a bill that would have weakened the Constitu- tional Court’s ability to temper the government back to Parliament.
Mr Margvelashvili has shown both courage and wisdom by sending this bill back. It was political meddling at its worst by the Georgian Dream coalition which had wanted to extend its control over the Constitutional Court, an independent body that is supposed to safeguard the country’s governing principles.
His action also gives another insight into the Georgian Dream coalition, only a few months before what is likely to be a hotly contested parliamentary election. PM Giorgi Kvirikashvili said both that he did not agree with the veto, but also that the Georgian Dream coalition MPs would not exercise their right to override the presidential decision in parliament.
The Georgian Dream coalition is internally divided and the President and the PM disagree on fundamental issues. The governing coalition looks to be in a weak state in the run up to the election.
ENDS
Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(Editorial from Issue No. 283, published on June 3 2016)
MAY 27 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — Fighting broke out outside a polling station in rural Georgia this week as people prepared to vote in local government by-elections. The fighting was direct and brutal and was also captured by onlookers on their mobile phones.
Videos from the fighting give a clear insight into the vicious divide in Georgian society between those people supporting the Georgian Dream Coalition, bankrolled by billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili, and those supporting the United National Movement, the party of former president Mikheil Saakashvili.
Just as Mr Ivanishvili and Mr Saakashvili hate each other, so do supporters of either party. If the parliamentary election of 2012 was considered nasty, it’ll be nothing compared to this year’s issue.
And it is expected to be close. Opinion polls haven’t been able to give any side a clear advantage. They have also introduced the possibility of third party muscling in on the two main rivals.
Expect a bumpy, passionate ride through to October.
ENDS
Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 282, published on May 27 2016)
MAY 22 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — Leaders and activists of the opposition UNM party were beaten in a fistfight outside polling stations in the village of Zugdidi in western Georgia. Local by-elections were being held in several municipalities across Georgia and the Georgian Dream ruling party won in seven out of nine races. The UNM cried foul, accusing Georgian Dream supporters of the beating. The interior ministry issued arrest warrants for the perpetrators.
ENDS
Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 282, published on May 27 2016)
MAY 24 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — Mikheil Saakashvili, former President of Georgia, now head of the local administration in Odessa, Ukraine, said he would go back to Georgia to campaign for his UNM party ahead of parliamentary elections next October. Mr Saakashvili told the Georgian TV channel Rustavi 2 that he still has a say in the UNM, the party he founded, and that he wants to be engaged in both Ukraine and Georgia.
ENDS
Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 282, published on May 27 2016)
APRIL 29 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – The Armenian parliament adopted a new electoral code, after weeks of debate in parliament (April 29). The new code, which will be used for the next parliamentary elections in 2017, is a mixed proportional-majoritarian system. Critics said the amendments failed to make the code robust and fraud-proof.
ENDS
Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 279, published on May 6 2016)
MAY 3 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – Tajikistan’s Central Election Commission approved President Emomali Rakhmon’s daughter, Ozoda Rakhmon, as a parliamentary candidate. Ms Rakhmon is currently head of the Presidential Administration and will run for a seat in the upper house in a May 29 by-election. Democracy advocates have accused Tajikistan of nepotism in selecting public officials.
ENDS
Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 279, published on May 6 2016)
MAY 3 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – The Georgian government said it would issue ID cards free-of-charge between May 26 and June 26, in an effort to prepare voters for a parliamentary election in October. Georgia’s electronic ID cards generally cost 30 lari ($13.6). The government is pushing for voters to have the correct identification documents to showcase its transparent electoral environment.
ENDS
Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 279, published on May 6 2016)