On April 29, 2026, the Public Defender of Georgia filed an amicus curiae brief with the Tbilisi Court of Appeal regarding cases where participants of assemblies were found to be administrative offenders for deliberately creating obstacles to the movement of people.

According to the information recently spread by various open sources and applications received by the Public Defender's Office, common courts are hearing a large number of cases on the above grounds.

The provision prohibiting assembly participants from artificially blocking pedestrian walkways is a new addition to national legislation. The Public Defender responded to this legislative reservation with a public statement in December last year and called on the Ministry of Internal Affairs not to restrict the rights of participants in peaceful assemblies when the discomfort created for pedestrians, considering alternative routes of movement, the number of participants in the assembly or its duration, did not reach a sufficiently serious level. The Public Defender criticized the new regulation in the 2025 parliamentary report as well.[1]

Since the relevant case law for identifying assembly participants as offenders for creating obstacles to pedestrian movement on sidewalks is currently being shaped by the decisions of the common courts, the Public Defender provided the Tbilisi Court of Appeal with information about the relevant human rights standards to assist in a proper resolution of the issue. Among other things, the document emphasizes that any assembly, by its very nature, may cause some disruption to the normal rhythm of life, although the authorities should allow such disruption, except in cases where it would disproportionately harm the competing interest. In addition, considering the approaches of international human rights institutions and the case law of the European Court of Human Rights, the amicus curiae opinion summarizes individual circumstances that, in the opinion of the Public Defender, are important for common courts to consider when hearing such cases.

---

[1] 2025 Parliamentary Report of the Public Defender of Georgia, pp. 183-184, available on the website: < bit.ly/4t6mDmS > [30.04.2026].

The Public Defender of Georgia assesses the legal and practical situation related to the use of asbestos in Georgia in the context of human rights in a special report.

Asbestos is a substance that poses a high risk to human health and its exposure is associated with serious diseases, including mesothelioma and lung cancer. The report reviews the impact of asbestos on the realization of the right to occupational safety, health and a healthy environment. The document analyzes both international standards and national regulations and the practice of individual municipalities.

The report highlights a number of challenges, including:

• International standards relating to asbestos regulation have not been fully implemented in Georgia;
• Some types of asbestos, including chrysotile (white asbestos), are still permitted in Georgia;
• No technical regulations have been adopted to regulate in detail the protection of employees from exposure to asbestos in the workplace;
• There are no mechanisms for the systemic detection and recording of asbestos-containing materials;
• Municipal practices regarding the management of asbestos-containing infrastructure are inconsistent;
• The population's awareness of the dangers of asbestos is low.

In the report, the Public Defender recommends that the Government of Georgia develop a unified vision and strategy for the comprehensive regulation of the issue, which would ensure compliance of the national standard with international obligations and take effective steps in this direction.

View online News from the Ombudsman - March 2026 Welcome... Welcome to the latest edition of News from the Ombudsman. In this edition you can read about: Our campaign to encourage care providers to be 'Complaints Confident' How we've launched our Complaint Handling Code for local authorities in England Improved visiting rights for people visiting loved ones in care homes How we're using lessons from our complaints to inform national debates We hope you enjoy reading our newsletter. If you'd like to hear more about the work we do, why not follow us on LinkedIn?   Reaching out to care self-funders Do you or a loved one receive care that is arranged without the involvement of the local council? If you’re receiving this newsletter, you may already know we can investigate complaints about ‘self-funded’ care. However, these types of complaints - about independent care providers - remain a small proportion of all the care complaints we receive, despite self-funded care making up a significant chunk of all the paid-for care given in England. For this reason, last week we launched a campaign to help care providers reflect on whether they are ‘complaints confident’. We’ve put together lots of useful resources which highlight what a good approach to complaints looks like, which includes telling their customers and families about their right to come to us if they have an unresolved complaint. We understand why the subject of complaining may feel uncomfortable at the point when people are choosing care. But being open about how concerns can be raised is important, and can reflect an organisation willing to listen and learn. The campaign is targeting care providers in the South East initially, but anyone can see our website and whether their care provider – or the one they are considering using – meets our best practice. Read more Complaint Code launches On Thursday 26 March, we held our Complaint Handling Code launch event in London, bringing together a diverse group of council officers, sector bodies and fellow Ombudsmen to explore the Code in practice. Attendees heard how we plan to apply it in our casework, and shared best practice with colleagues from across the sector. The day featured contributions from the Ethics and Integrity Commission, who spoke about their current review into public sector Ombudsmen services, and from the Blavatnik School of Government at the University of Oxford, who presented their research into the long-term impact of our work. We were also delighted to hear from Liverpool City Council, who shared their transformation journey to improve complaint handling - and how the Code played a meaningful role in that process. The event closed with an open panel session, giving delegates the chance to put their questions to speakers on the day's presentations and on complaint handling improvement more broadly. The Complaint Handling Code sets out how organisations we investigate should handle complaints fairly and effectively. It helps resolve issues quickly, improve services using complaint data, and build a positive culture around complaint handling. Read more Stronger visiting rights in care and health settings The government has announced plans to strengthen visiting rights for people in care homes, hospitals and hospices, following a review of CQC Regulation 9A, which came into force in April 2024. The review found that many people continue to face barriers to visiting, including blanket restrictions and exclusion from decisions about care. In response, the government has said it will issue clearer guidance to providers, work with the Care Quality Commission to monitor compliance, and explore legislation to further embed visiting rights across health and social care. If you have experienced difficulties visiting a loved one in a care setting and your concerns have not been resolved, we may be able to help. We investigate complaints about adult social care providers independently, impartially and free of charge. Visit lgo.org.uk to find out more or to make a complaint.   Giving our views on SEND Earlier this month, we were pleased to accept an invitation to speak at the 2026 SEN Law Conference. Our Assistant Ombudsman, Sharon Chappell, gave a talk about closing the accountability gap for children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) in schools. Coming shortly after the Government’s launch of its White Paper setting out plans for reforming the education system, the event was an important opportunity for people all across the sector to debate the new developments. Our insights focused on how an equal system of redress for all parts of the education system is crucial for children with SEND and their families to have a fair say. For organisations to be held properly accountable for delivering their statutory duties there must be independent oversight of complaints for all parts. Sharing learning to improve services March was a busy month for our team. We responded to three government consultations: one from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government on proposed changes to the National Planning Policy Framework, and two from the Department for Education - on fostering reform and the establishment of a new Child Protection Authority in England. Our consultation responses are grounded in real-world evidence drawn directly from our casework. For the planning consultation, we were able to draw on cases we have handled involving the planning system, while our responses on fostering and child protection were informed by cases relating to how local authorities administer these vital services. This ensures that the experiences of the people who come to us are reflected in national policy discussions. Read more Easter hours We will be closing our advice line for Easter at 1pm on Thursday 2nd April. This will reopen at 10am on Tuesday 7th April. Our online complaints system will also be closed from 5pm on Thursday till 8am on Tuesday.  News you may have missed... Disabled man slept on floor after council homelessness failure, Ombudsman finds Investigation into Bucks brothers’ missing therapy uncovered 400 children potentially affected by change of council contract We look at individual complaints about local public services and all registerable social care providers in England. We remedy injustice and share learning from investigations to improve services. When we find a council or care provider has done something wrong, we recommend how it should put it right. We are free to use and make our decisions independently. Find out more about us at www.lgo.org.uk Manage preferences or unsubscribe Contact us

Volksanwältin Veronika Meyer und Regierungskommissärin Maddalena Travaglini trafen sich kürzlich zu einem ersten Gedankenaustausch im Herzogspalast in Bozen. Thematischer Fokus auf bürgernaher Verwaltung und Antidiskriminierung.

Eine Abordnung der Bürgerwelle Südtirol traf sich mit Volksanwältin Veronika Meyer zum Gedankenaustausch über die zunehmende Digitalisierung und das Recht der Bürger:innen auf analoges Leben.