The Parliament discussed with the I reading and adopted the Draft Rules of Procedure with 88 votes, establishing new regulations and procedures for the nomination and election of the candidate for the Public Defender; the draft was introduced by the Chair of the Human Rights and Civil Integration Committee, Mikheil Sajrveladze.

“The draft is related to the 12th paragraph of the 12-point plan, namely the election of the Public Defender. The term of the incumbent Ombudsman expires in December and this fact sets out the tasks to us to plan the procedures in a timely manner to ensure the adherence to the standards and principles established within the 12-point plan and in line with the international standards regulating the hereof issue”, - he stated.

The reporter overviewed the essence of the changes noting that the Draft establishes a temporary rule for the election of the PD to ensure high transparency of the nomination and selection of a candidate, namely, the candidates shall be nominated to the Parliament within 2022 in order established under the Decree of the Speaker, which also determines the set-up of a special assessment group composed of 9 members, including the civil society, academic and professional circles.

After the assessment of the candidates by the group, the subjects eligible to nominate a candidate under the Rules of Procedure shall enjoy the opportunity to select the candidates amongst the persons who appeal to the Parliament for participation in the assessment process. The number of candidates, as established, shall be no less than 7, which ensures the diversity of the candidates for the Parliament.

As the reporter elucidated, the hereof change ensures transparency and inclusiveness of the selection. M. Sarjveladze answered the questions, after which the Parliament approved the Draft with 88 votes. MPs also adopted the legal package on the Intelligence Service discussed with the III reading yesterday and the Draft Resolution on the Report of the Government on Implementation of the State Budget 2021.