71 years ago, on 10 December 1948, the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Protection and respect of human rights to which democratic societies should aspire shall be the key obligation and goal of every state.

Throughout the year, the Georgian Young Lawyers' Association has worked hard to protect human rights through litigations, monitoring, advocacy and involvement in the law-making process.

GYLA notes that the most pressing issues during the year were cases of gross violations of the right to assembly and manifestation, disproportionate use of police force, the formal hearing of administrative cases in the court, the formal role of the judge when overseeing the protection of human rights in criminal proceedings, the severe humanitarian crisis on the occupation line, and threats to the media environment.

Regulating the issue of sexual harassment in a law has earned a positive assessment as well as the adoption of the Code on the Rights of the Child and the Organic Law “On Labour Safety” can be considered a step forward. The launch of the Investigative Division of the State Inspector, despite its limited mandate and powers, is a welcoming fact and an amendment that allows the judge to apply to a relevant authority in case of torture, degrading and / or inhuman treatment of the accused / convicted should be highly appreciated.

Below you can see a full version of the statement detailing the key human rights challenges identified by the GYLA in 2019.