The Committee considered with the II reading the draft on Personal Data Protection, envisaging extension of the basis for processing of special category data – the new norm shall be added enabling processing of special category data even the data is processes for functioning of uniform analytical system of migration data.
As the Deputy-Justice Minister, Mikheil Sarjveladze stated, establishment of migration analytical system shall be ensured under the law. “It requires the change to the Personal Data Protection law and granting authority to the State Service Agency to process special category data”. LEPL State Service Development Agency implements establishment of the migration data uniform analytical system with support of International Center for Migration Policy Development and International Organization for Migration. The project aims at improvement of migration process management through necessary surveys of statistic data obtained with processing of the data in the migration data base available in respective administrative bodies and other parameters. The Committee supported the draft. The Committee considered with the II reading the draft on E-Document and E-Reliable Service.
The draft defines e-document, e-signature and e-reliable service application legal basis and elucidates new terms. The draft does not restrict the right of the legal and natural persons to apply material document and/or personal signature. New regulations shall not apply to the documents containing state secret. As M. Sarjveladze stated, the legislative act exists regulating similar relations but practice revealed that lots of norms shall be re-regulated as in terminological so in contextual terms.
The Committee expressed remarks regarding term definition and contextual improvement of some terms which were shared. The Committee supported the draft.

The Committee developed the Regulation of the Scientific-Advisory Council and defined the composition thereof. The Council will be composed of 19 members being the competent consultants in the respective sphere, though according to the Chair of the Committee, Zviad Kvachantiradze, the members can be added. The tasks of the Council are: Facilitation to enhancement of relations with the compatriots residing abroad, Diaspora organizations and Caucasus nations; Facilitation to regulation of migration processes and improvement of the respective legislative base; Maximal public involvement in decision-making; Provision of respective analytical activity and development of conclusions. The Council members will develop the recommendations and proposals on diaspora, migration and Caucasus issues. According to one of the members, the Director of the National Library of Parliament, Giorgi Kekelidze, the NL works on the material related to Georgian migrants and in on Movement Equilibrium envisaging support to Georgian Diasporas in arrangement of Sunday Schools. The Head of the Caucasus Center for Strategic Studies, Mamuka Areshidze elucidated that the Center works throughout Caucasus. “Though, there is the particular direction of North Caucasus. It is study of scientific and political issues and development of security matters. We actively cooperate on religious extremism and Diaspora and compatriot issues”. The Director of the South Caucasus Regional Security Institute, Alexander Rusetski introduced the approaches of the Institute on diaspora policy. The current processes pass under globalization conditions and non-consideration of globalization would be wrong. The agenda includes the issue: what Diaspora is – additive to the national policy or integral and fundamental part thereof. Experience of other countries in respective sphere shall be shared; the lobbyist policy shall be regulated and informational security issues shall be arranged”. The Committee will in details consider the issues at the special sitting.

The Committee considered with the I reading the draft on Code of Imprisonment, envisaging establishment of additional mechanism for re-socialization/rehabilitation of the convicts, establishment of penitential agency for preparation of convicts for release and higher education, improvement of mechanism for release of convicts ahead of time, elimination of offenses on the adjacent territory of the penitential department and provision of due functioning of the penitential department. The draft was introduced by the Deputy-Corrections Minister, Kakha Kakhishvili. The changes are for continuation of the reform launched in 2012 in terms of provision of human rights protection in penitential system and compliance with standards. “These are the issues we considered with the international organizations and which will put the human rights protection process in the penitential system on a higher stake”. The essential change envisages establishment of the agency for preparation for release to prepare the low and average risk convicts for release, the detention term of which does not exceed 6 months. The convict, in the agency, on the basis of the permit of the Director, shall be allowed temporarily leaving the penitential department if he/she works, studies or wants to spend days-off outside, though the release term shall not exceed 3 days. Another significant change envisages substitution of the remaining term with the lighter punishment. The local council of the Corrections of Ministry shall be entitled in case of written application of the convict and after preferential period under the law, to substitute the remaining term with house arrest. The changes also regulate the rendezvous issues. The female convict shall have the family rendezvous only with the permit of the Director. The draft envisages different regulations for TV use – the convict in the agency for release or the low and average risk convicts shall be allowed without permission acquiring TV and radio. The draft entitles the Court solely to release the convict due to disease in case of the health state is not compatible with serving penalty and if expert concludes that no improvement of health state is expected. The Court shall consider expediency of enforcement of the penalty, personal peculiarities of the convict, past committed crimes, nature, motive and objective of the crime etc. One of the most important issues is opportunity for education. The convict in the agency for release or the low risk convict shall be entitled to realize the higher education right on the first stage of academic education (bachelor). The female convict having a child under 3 in the department and the childe turning 3 has left the department, shall be entitled within one year, to leave the department on week-ends. The Minister stated that the change will facilitate integration of a child with the external world and will minimize mental traumatization of a child due to separation with the mother. The current law entitles the life convict after serving 15 years to appeal to the local council for alleviation of the penalty. The changes entitle the life convict to appeal to the Court instead of the local standard, which is the higher stage. The life convicts serving 20 years shall be entitled to appeal to the Court for release. The Ministry, upon development of the draft, considered the part of the changes submitted by the NGOs and Public Defender. The Committee decided to further specify formulation of some changes.

BP in Georgia today announced that it has extended its partnership with the Georgian National Paralympic Committee (GNPC) and the Georgian Paralympic athlete ambassadors through to the end of 2020. The extension of the partnership was made official during the signing ceremony with BP General Manager in Georgia, Mr. Chris Schlueter and President of the Georgian National Paralympic Committee Mr. Shalva Maisuradze at the Parasports Development Center. BP has extended its official partnership with the GNPC beyond the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games until the completion of the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. Within the renewed partnership agreement BP will continue to support the Georgian National Paralympic committee and BP’s three athlete ambassadors - Zviad Gogochuri, winner of the gold medal in Blind Judo at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games; Nika Tvauri, swimmer and Irma Khetsuriani, wheelchair fencer – to help promote Paralympic movement in Georgia and prepare for the major Paralympic event to be hosted by Tokyo in 2020. Chris Schlueter, General Manager for BP in Georgia said: ‘Great energy and success of our world-class Paralympic athletes is an inspiration for me, my colleagues at BP and Georgian society. BP is privileged to be the first official partner of the GNPC since the 2011. We are happy our partnership has contributed to the development of the Paralympic movement in the country. We continue our partnership with the Georgian National Paralympic Committee and our athlete ambassadors to build on the success Georgia’s Paralympic team achieved on the international arena at the Paralympic games in Rio. ‘ Shalva Maisuradze, President of the GNPC said: ‘For the Georgian Paralympic Committee it is very important to be supported by the strong company like BP in Georgia. BP was the first official partner of GNPC and we are delighted that we continued this partnership until 2020. This will help Paralympic movement develop at a pace in Georgia. BP’s athlete ambassador program is equally important and unprecedented in its right supporting Para athletes. We believe this partnership will serve as a role model and other companies will also express a desire to become a partner of the Georgian Paralympic Committee. To our satisfaction we are already working with the VTB bank in this direction. They were the first to support winter Para sport development in Georgia. Under this sponsorship 2 Para athletes and 2 coaches attended theoretical and practical courses in alpine skiing and cross country skiing at the ski resort in Poland. VTB has already supported purchase of 2 wheelchairs for wheelchair skiing. Notes to editors: BP in Georgia is an official partner of the Paralympic committee and official partner of the Paralympic athletes since 2011. BP in partnership with GNPC has supported Georgian Paralympic team with the development and preparation for the Paralympic games in London and Rio. BP is also an international partner of the International Paralympic Committee, the governing body of the Paralympic movement. BP first came to Georgia in 1996. Together with our business partners, BP has been operating major oil and gas pipelines in Georgia for more than 20 years. BP’s activities in Georgia feature three major energy projects, in which we are the lead investor and operator: The Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline, Western Route Export Pipeline (WREP) and The South Caucasus gas Pipeline (SCP) and ongoing expansion activities. BP invested more than $3 billion into energy business and social projects in Georgia and beyond including the jobs we create and the taxes we pay. Major part of our contribution to Georgia is in providing gas from SCP for domestic use, which provides great value to the country and additional gas volumes when the new SCP Expansion (SCPX) project facilities come on stream. Today more than 3800 Georgian citizens are employed on SCPX project in Georgia. We employee 500 people within our operations in Georgia and generate business for local suppliers and contractors. Over the past years, we have contributed to a wide range of projects in Georgia which have sought to help local communities, promote business development, support education and protect Georgia’s cultural and natural environment.

The ongoing reform process in the field of defence, the progress achieved in defence transformation and the tasks to be implemented in future were the key topics Minister of Defence of Georgia highlighted during the meeting with Chairman of NATO Military Committee General Petr Pavel. In the framework of two-day visit of the NATO MS delegation, General Petr Pavel held the first meeting in Ministry of Defence attended by First Deputy Minister Lela Chikovani, Chief of the GS of the GAF Brigadier General Vladimer Chachibaia and Head of the Georgian Mission to NATO Aleksandre Maisuradze. Security situation and challenges faced by Georgia, its engagement in the context of Black Sea security were focused on during discussions. As Defence Minister underlined, Georgia is the most interoperable and reliable partner of NATO in the region providing a significant contribution to the Euro-Atlantic and international security operations. The sides also stressed importance of NATO-Georgia cooperation mechanisms and Substantial NATO-Georgia Package implementation. Minister Levan Izoria thanked NATO MS Chairman for significant practical assistance provided by NATO nations promoting enhancement of defence capabilities of the GAF and NATO interoperability According to Minister, senior military authority of NATO conducted the meeting in Georgia for the second time in Georgia`s history which is a visible demonstration for its unwavering support towards Georgia`s sovereignty, territorial integrity and Euro-Atlantic aspirations. The meeting with General Petr Pavel and senior NATO military representatives continued in an extended format. After the meeting, Minister and Chairman of NATO Military Committee held a press-conference with media representatives and answered the questions around NATO-Georgia cooperation and future plans of partnership.

The Committee discussed termination of authority ahead of time for the MPs – Giorgi Kvirikashvili, Kakha Kaladze, Giorgi Gakharia and Sandra Roelofs. The Parliament voted confidence to the new Government and the Governmental Program “Freedom, Rapid Development and Welfare” on November 26.
Giorgi Kvirikashvili was appointed as the Prime Minister, Kakha Kaladze – Minister of Energy, Giorgi Gakharia – Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development. Sandra Reolofs rejected the Parliamentary mandate. The Committee supported the issue. The Committee shall submit the conclusion to the Bureau serving the basis for inclusion of the issue into the plenary agenda.

The Chair, Mikheil Kavelashvli spoke about the activity and the priorities of the Committee. He hoped that regardless of different views of the majority and minority, the constructive cooperation will result in the decisions beneficial for the country. The Committee shall do its best to make sports the field number one, to increase the volume of the sphere and ensure active involvement of adults therein. Committee members stated that sport can bring benefits for the country in terms of economic enhancement.
The Committee supported the Regulation and elected Shota Khabareli as the First Deputy Chair, Irakli Abuseridze from majority and Zaza Kedelashvili from minority as the Deputy Chairs. The Committee is composed of 13 members:

Mikheil Kavelashvili – Chair of the Committee 
Shota Khabareli – First Deputy Chair
Irakli Abuseridze - Deputy Chair
Zaza Kedelashvili - Deputy Chair
Leri Khabelovi
Levan Kobiashvili
Bidzina Gegidze
Giorgi Mosidze
Giorgi Totladze
Genadi Margvelashvili
Mukhran Vakhtangadze
Giorgi Kopadze
Koba Nakopia