Reacting to news that a court in Georgia has ordered five independent civil society organizations to submit highly sensitive information about beneficiaries protected through their human rights work, as well as information on their activities and grants, to the Anti-Corruption Bureau, Denis Krivosheev, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, said:
“This order is yet another example of the authorities’ escalating repression of the rights to freedom of expression and association in Georgia and weaponization of the country’s justice system and the Anti-Corruption Bureau to target and crackdown on human rights defenders, activists and independent civil society organizations. Targeting those who fight for justice and combat corruption is contrary to Georgia’s international human rights obligations including the rights to freedom of expression and association.
Targeting those who fight for justice and combat corruption is contrary to Georgia’s international human rights obligations including the rights to freedom of expression and association
Denis Krivosheev, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia
“Forcing non-governmental organizations to hand over sensitive information, including their beneficiaries’ names, photographs, banking records and health data limits the independence and autonomy of the organizations, and grants disproportionate governmental control over the operations of the organizations. It places impingements on the crucial work of Georgia’s vibrant civil society and human rights defenders who protect those who have suffered from torture, sexual violence, corruption or other human rights violations. This blatant violation of the rights to privacy and freedom of expression and association must stop.
“The authorities must immediately revert the order, repeal the repressive legislation which targets the independence and autonomy of civil society organizations, and guarantee and ensure that human rights defenders and activists can work free from fear of retaliation.”
Background
An order by the Tbilisi City Court, dated 12 June 2025, granted the Anti-Corruption Bureau the right to demand from five civil society organizations – Transparency International Georgia, Sapari, Civil Society Foundation, Economic Policy Research Center and Georgia’s Future Academy – vast amounts of programmatic, administrative, financial and personal information, including on all their contractors and individual beneficiaries, from 1 January 2024 to 10 June 2025.
The order invokes the Law on Grants, the Law on Political Associations of Citizens and the Law on Combatting Corruption, all recently amended by the ruling Georgian Dream party in its campaign aimed at curtailing the rights to freedom of association and expression and other human rights.
The NGOs have condemned the move and vowed to challenge it in court.