US Senators slam Georgian Gov't for "power consolidation", arrests of opposition leaders

US Senators Jeanne Shaheen, Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Roger Wicker, Chair of the US Helsinki Commission, issued a joint statement condemning the Georgian government's escalating attacks on civil society and political opposition.

Their remarks follow reports that Georgia’s Anti-Corruption Bureau has requested extensive and highly detailed information from civil society organizations — including those working on human rights — on legally questionable grounds.

“The Georgian Dream (GD) government is moving aggressively to consolidate power by silencing independent voices in anti-democratic moves reminiscent of the Lukashenka regime in Belarus,” the senators stated. “The scope of the information requested from civil society is likely illegal, but also so vast that it will certainly lead to non-compliance.”

They warned that these efforts, allegedly directed by ruling party founder and oligarch Bidzina Ivanishvili, are designed to obstruct and paralyze the work of prominent organizations such as the Civil Society Foundation, Economic Policy Research Center, Transparency International Georgia, Sapari, Future Academy, Media Development Foundation, and the International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy (ISFED).

In addition, the senators expressed concern over the Georgian Dream government's recent wave of arrests targeting pro-democracy leaders on what they called “politically motivated charges.”

“Democratic governments should not view organizations supporting independent media, combatting Kremlin propaganda, fighting corruption or supporting women and youth to be threats,” Shaheen and Wicker emphasized.

Reaffirming their support for Georgia’s civil society, the senators pledged to use legislative tools to push back against democratic backsliding. They voiced strong support for the bipartisan MEGOBARI Act, aimed at holding Georgian officials accountable, and called for its advancement as soon as the Senate schedule allows.