2017-06-29
Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili met today in Batumi with President Gianni Buquicchio of the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe.
The parties discussed the constitutional amendments initiated by the ruling team, which seek to put in place a well-balanced constitution grounded in democratic principles.
According to the Prime Minister, these amendments, developed based on unprecedented public debates by the Constitutional Commission bringing together politicians, NGOs, and independent experts, will enable Georgia to have a constitution that ensures a comprehensive parliamentary model of government, greater effectiveness of the government, better defined functions of the president as a neutral arbiter, and stronger protection of human rights and society as a whole.
The conversation also involved the date of switchover to proportional representation planned in 2024. The Prime Minister emphasized the fact of the introduction of proportional representation being a demonstration of the ruling team's political will, it is a great achievement, as this issue never even was on the table under the previous governments.
The meeting was also attended by Georgia's Foreign Minister Mikheil Janelidze, Speaker of the Parliament Irakli Kobakhidze, and parliamentary majority leader Archil Talakvadze.
The meeting between the Georgian Prime Minister and the President of the Venice Commission was held under the 17th Congress of European Constitutional Courts in Batumi.
Prime Minister's Press Office