ISFED expresses its readiness to protect the rights of a member of #90 PEC in Kutaisi
On November 1st, Iza Chirgadze member of #90 Precinct Election Commission (PEC) of Kutaisi (#59), who was elected by the District Election Commission on professional basis, stated that she was a registrar on election day at polling station #90, when she noticed voters using ID cards that belonged to other individuals and she refused to give them ballot papers and prevented their illegal participation in the elections. According to her, after this, the representative of the ruling party was contacting and asking her to give bulletins to the voters who, in fact, were not the voters of the polling station #90.
On the same day, member of “Girchi – More Freedom” and opposition’s vice-mayoral candidate in Kutaisi, Imeda Kldiashvili contacted ISFED to provide legal assistance for Iza Chirgadze. ISFED representative immediately contacted Ms Chirgadze and scheduled a meeting with her on November 2nd, at 13:30 pm to clarify the information and to define a scope of required legal assistance. However, since this morning, Iza Chirgaze’s phone is being turned off and it is impossible to contact her.
On the night of November 1st, Imeda Kldiashvili stated that State Security Service of Georgia (SSG) put pressure on Iza Chirgadze and prohibited her from communicating with the representatives of opposition parties. As a sign of protest, Kldiashvili blocked the entrance of SSG in Kutaisi with a car. The law enforcement officers forcefully arrested him, for violating the code of administrative offenses.
ISFED believes that the law enforcement agencies are fully responsible for ensuring safe and pressure-free environment for Chirgadze and her family. In addition, the organization calls on the respective agencies to timely investigate the cases of electoral violations stated by the PEC member and to take appropriate and timely measures to prevent the alleged pressure on Iza Chirgadze.
ISFED remains ready to protect the rights of Iza Chirgadze.