Georgia's Ruling Party Faces Legal Criticism for New Protest Rules

The Georgian Dream party is trying to change the law to make protesting harder. Critics believe this is an attempt to stop people from speaking out against the government. The changes would make the rules stricter and punish those who don't follow them.

Restrictions Now Include Sidewalks

The main change is that the rules would now apply to sidewalks and pedestrian areas. Before, you only had to give notice if a protest blocked traffic.

Nona Kurdovanidze, who heads the Georgian Young Lawyers' Association (GYLA), said that putting restrictions on car-free zones is completely unacceptable and unconstitutional. She believes the changes criminalize freedom of expression and assembly and will have a extremely negative impact.

Five-Day Notice Required

Under the new law, protest organizers would have to tell the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) at least five days before any gathering that might block people or cars. This applies to both planned and spontaneous protests.

The five-day notice is controversial. Ms. Kurdovanidze said that it's like asking for permission in advance, which would make spontaneous protests impossible.

She also said that this goes against a ruling by Georgia's Constitutional Court on December 14, 2023. The court said that the five-day rule was unconstitutional because it stopped spontaneous gatherings. The court has stated that you can't have rules that stop people from protesting suddenly, but the new changes seem to do just that.

Tough Penalties

The MIA could suggest a different place or way to protest if they think the planned event would cause trouble, disrupt the government, or block others from moving freely.

If protesters don't move to the suggested place and keep protesting, they could face serious penalties:

First Offense: Individual protesters could be detained for up to 15 days, while organizers could be detained for up to 20 days.

Repeat Offense: This could mean jail time under Article 347 of the Criminal Code, with up to a year in prison for both protesters and organizers.

The bill also says that even if protesters stop blocking an area within 15 minutes of being told to by police, they will still be punished.

Political Reasons

The Georgian Dream party is pushing these changes while there are daily anti-government protests, which started in late 2024. Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili, a member of the ruling party, says the measures are needed to protect the rights of other citizens.

Papuashvili stated, "If drivers shouldn't have unnecessary problems, the same goes for pedestrians. If protesters aren't numerous enough, they shouldn't block other citizens. Blocking shouldn't be done on purpose."

Despite previous restrictions in October 2025 that penalized things like wearing masks and blocking roads, and after arrests, protests have continued, mostly on the sidewalks. International Amnesty has cautioned that the crackdown and stricter laws threaten the freedom of speech and assembly. Critics believe that while the changes might be challenged in court, it's unlikely that the court will rule against them in the current political situation.