Georgia - €4.65 million to reinforce the rule of law and democratic processes

The European Commission has decided today to make available €4.65 million under its Rapid Reaction Mechanism (RRM) for measures to reinforce the rule of law and democratic processes in Georgia. The EC will allocate funds to policy and institutional reform in four areas: (i) penitentiary and probation service reform; (ii) organisational reform of the Ministry of Justice as well as other public institutions; (iii) parliamentary and electoral reform; (iv) confidence building among population groups affected by conflict. With this programme the Commission stresses once again the EU commitment to structural democratic reform in Georgia. The RRM programme is complementary to other projects such as the recently agreed Rule of Law mission "EUJUST THEMIS", conducted in the framework of the ESDP (European Security and Defence Policy). Most RRM-financed projects will be followed by funding under TACIS.

Since the so-called Rose Revolution (November 2003), the Government of Georgia has committed itself to democratic reforms with the aim of bringing Georgia closer to European standards.

The Rapid Reaction Mechanism is one of the instruments the EU can mobilise to help strengthen the rule of law and democratic processes to support Georgia's transition. Under the RRM, assistance will be provided to judiciary policies and sectors that are in urgent need of reform after a period of severe neglect, such as the penitentiary and probation services. In order to enhance the sustainability of the reform processes in the judiciary, managerial assistance will be provided to the institutions in charge of co-ordinating these reforms. In addition, short-term assistance will be provided to the Ministry of Internal Affairs in order to modernise human-resource policy in the context of the reform of the police sector in Georgia.

These RRM-funded projects will be closely co-ordinated with the Rule of Law Mission "EUJUST THEMIS" in order to ensure full complementarity between all the EU actions in support of the rule of law in Georgia.

The Rapid Reaction Mechanism will also provide funding to key institutions safeguarding the democratic process: the Parliament and the Central Electoral Commission. The RRM will be used to kick-start a reform programme with the aim of enhancing the Parliament's roles of oversight and lawmaking. The objectives of the reform programme in support of the Central Electoral Commission are to sustain its professionalism and institutional autonomy and to enhance Georgian citizens' awareness of their democratic and electoral rights.

Finally, the RRM will be used to finance peace-building initiatives with a view to enhance confidence among the population groups affected by conflicts in Georgia. This will include technical support to the administration of the State Minister for Conflict Resolution.

Most RRM-financed projects will be followed by funding under TACIS, which guarantees their long-term impact.

Background

The European Union (EU) has, on numerous occasions, expressed its commitment to supporting this reform process. On 14 June 2004, the Council decided to include Georgia in the European Neighbourhood Policy. At the Donor Conference, co-chaired by the Commission and the World Bank which took place on 16-17 June, the Commission announced a doubling of European Community assistance with a pledge of €125 million to Georgia for the period 2004-2006 compared with 2001-2003.


For further information see:

The EU's relations with Georgia - Overview:

http://europa.eu.int/comm/external_relations/georgia/intro/index.htm

Common Foreign & Security Policy (CFSP) - Financing:

http://europa.eu.int/comm/external_relations/cfsp/fin/index.htm

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• EU pledges funds at Georgia Donors' Conference (15/6/2004)