The Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association (GYLA) has announced that it was suspending its long-running free legal aid services programme due to restrictive laws adopted by the ruling Georgian Dream party.
GYLA announced it was suspending its programme on 14 March.
In a statement announcing the suspension, GYLA said that the programme provided free legal consultations and legal aid to more than 1.3 million people over the course of 31 years.
‘As a result of this support, thousands of citizens have been able to effectively protect their rights both within the country and in international judicial bodies’, the organisation said.
GYLA noted that civil society organisations were ‘working in one of the most difficult environments in the history of independent Georgia’. They cited ‘unconstitutional legislative amendments’ the ruling party has been adopting and drafting since 2024 which had ‘significantly narrowed the space for human rights activities’.
‘In addition, the repressive environment has forced a significant number of civil society organisations to completely cease or drastically reduce their activities, while the real risk of criminal prosecution has established a regime of constant pressure on their work’.
GYLA said the suspension of its free legal consultations programme would affect ‘thousands of citizens’ who would no longer receive their support.
They said that they were ‘temporarily switching to crisis mode’ and would only provide legal assistance for strategic litigation.
GYLA has in recent years represented a number of people detained while protesting against Georgian Dream’s repressive policies.
Mikheil Gvadzabia
