Despite the unifying rhetoric, where he noted that “every citizen of Georgia is precious to him,” the illegitimate president of Georgia, Mikheil Kavelashvili, on the very day of his inauguration, December 29, signed about seven laws restricting freedom of assembly and expression, right to a fair trial, inviolability of private life, personal security and non-discrimination.

The laws that Mikheil Kavelashvili signed and that were adopted by the illegitimate parliament on December 13, 2024 in the third reading, include:

• The prohibition of possession of pyrotechnics and the use of lasers during assemblies and demonstrations – the disproportionately severe fines imposed for the very first violation (from GEL 1,000 to GEL 2,000) are contrary to the practice of the European Court of Human Rights. In particular, it limits the opportunity for protest participants to express their position without fear of unjustified financial sanctions (Kudrevičius and Others v. Lithuania, 2015)
• The prohibition of covering a face with a “mask or any other means” – the restriction, which provides for a fine of up to GEL 2,000 for the very first violation, is disproportionately severe. The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has also repeatedly considered such restrictions to be unjustified interference (Bukta v. Hungary, 2007).
• Administrative fines have disproportionately increased – for assemblies, if the police consider that the number of demonstrators is insufficient to block the road; for participating in the assembly - instead of GEL 500, GEL 5,000, and for organizers - instead of GEL 5,000, a fine of GEL 15,000, or up to 15 days of administrative detention.
• For blocking the entrance to an administrative building, instead of a fine, administrative detention of up to 15 days will be imposed.
• If drivers join the protest in convoy and the police consider that traffic is being obstructed, the driver will be fined GEL 1,000 and will be deprived of his/her driving license for a year.
• The fine for distorting the appearance of the territory in the municipality [arbitrarily making various types of inscriptions, drawings, symbols on the facades of buildings, shop windows, fences, columns, trees, as well as placing posters, slogans, banners in places not designated for this purpose, leaving fences and buildings unpainted] has increased from GEL 50 to GEL 1,000. Repeat violators will be fined GEL 2,000 instead of GEL 500.
• The fine for arbitrarily making various types of inscriptions, drawings, symbols on the facades of buildings of administrative bodies has also increased from GEL 500 to GEL 2,000. Repeated violations of the rule will result in a fine of GEL 3,000 or up to 15 days of administrative imprisonment.
• Another new regulation is preventive detention. The police have been granted the right to preventive detention for the purpose of preventing the repeated commission of an administrative offence. Personal searches, searches of items, and seizure of items and documents have also been permitted.
• Amendments have also been made to Article 172 of the Administrative Offences Code, which concern disobedience to the lawful order of the police officer. If a minor is found to have violated this article, his or her parent or legal guardian will be fined from GEL 100 to GEL 300.

Amendments to the Criminal Code

• Violation of the rules for the registration, storage, transportation, use or transfer of explosive, flammable, harsh substances or pyrotechnic products, which resulted in serious consequences, shall be punishable by a fine or house arrest for a term of six months to two years or by imprisonment for a term of two to five years.

• The procedures for employment in the police have been simplified. Namely, the Minister of Internal Affairs has been authorized to hire a person to work in the police without a special competition, which eliminates the need for a competition and transparent selection. This practice increases the risks of corruption and nepotism and violates the principles of a legal state.

• Amendments to the Election Code have increased the share of the majoritarian element in municipalities, which promotes narrow party interests and undermines the principle of proportional representation. The amendments weaken the representation of small parties, which violates the principle of pluralism and promotes one-man rule.

Amendments to the Law of Georgia on Public Service

• The head and deputy head of a primary structural unit of an institution will no longer be professional public servants – they will become persons appointed under an administrative contract.

The reorganization process has been simplified, which increases the risk that it will become an instrument of political cleansing. The remedies for civil servants, including the possibility of litigation, have significantly weakened.

According to the Democracy Research Center (DRC), the Georgian authorities are deliberately waging a war against their own population through repressive laws, increasing discrimination against the opposition, restricting freedom of expression, and making any form of protest punishable by harsh sanctions. This is a clear attempt to consolidate power and destroy democratic processes, which threatens the country's democratic future and only strengthens the country's isolation from the civilized world and the strengthening of Russian influence.