Parliament of Georgia
Encyclopedia
Parliament of Georgia is the supreme legislature
of Georgia
. It is unicameral and has 150 members, known as deputies, from which 75 members are proportional representatives and 75 are elected through single-member district plurality system, representing their constituencies. All members of the Parliament are elected for four years on the basis of universal human suffrage
.
The Constitution of Georgia
grants Parliament of Georgia central legislative power, which is limited by the Parliaments of the autonomous republics of Adjara
and Abkhazia
.
Slightly predating the Magna Carta
in the United Kingdom
, an idea of limiting the royal power and creating a parliament
ary-type body of government was conceived among the aristocrats and citizens in the 12th century Kingdom of Georgia, during the reign of Queen Tamar
, the first Georgian
female monarch.
(a Georgian Simon de Montfort
), the first Georgian Parliament was to be formed of two "Chambers": a) Darbazi – or assembly of aristocrats and influential citizens who would meet from time to time to take decisions on the processes occurring in the country, the implementation of these decisions devolving on the monarch b) Karavi – a body in permanent session between the meetings of the Darbazi. The confrontation ended in the victory of the supporters of unlimited royal power. Qutlu Arslan was arrested on the Queen’s order.
Subsequently, it was only in 1906 that the Georgians were afforded the opportunity of sending their representatives to a Parliamentary body of Government, to the Second State Duma
(from 1801 Georgia had been incorporated in the Russian Empire).
Georgian deputies to the Duma were Noe Zhordania
(later the President of independent Georgia in 1918-21), Ilia Chavchavadze (founder of the Georgian National Movement), Irakli Tsereteli
(leader of the Social-Democratic Faction in the Second Duma, later Minister of Internal Affairs of Russia’s Provisional Government), Karlo Chkheidze (leader of the Menshevik
Faction in the Fourth State Duma, Chairman of the first convocation of the Central Executive Committee of the All-Russian Workers’ and Soldiers’ Deputies in 1917, and Chairman of the Trans-Caucasian Seym in 1918), and others.
In 1918 the first Georgian National Parliament was founded in the already independent Georgia
. In 1921 the Parliament adopted the first Georgian Constitution. However, shortly after the adoption of the Constitution, Georgia was occupied by the Bolshevik Red Army
. This was followed by a gap of 69 years in the Parliamentary Government in Georgian history. The construction of the parliament building started in 1938 and completed in 1953, when Georgia was still a part of Soviet Union. It was designed by architects Victor Kokorin and Giorgi Lezhava.
The first multiparty Elections in the Soviet Union
were held in Georgia on October 28, 1990. The elected Supreme Soviet (the name of the simulated and pseudo-Parliament in the former Soviet Union) proclaimed the independence of Georgia). On May 26, 1991 Georgia’s population elected the Chairman of the Supreme Council Zviad Gamsakhurdia
as President of the country.
The tension between the ruling and opposition parties gradually intensified, which in 1991-92 developed into an armed conflict. The President left the country, the Supreme Soviet ceased to function and power was taken over by the Military Council.
In 1992, former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Soviet Union Eduard Shevardnadze
returned to Georgia, assuming Chairmanship of the Military Council which was reconstituted into a State Security Council
. The State Council restored Georgia’s Constitution of 1921, announcing August 4, 1992 as the day of parliamentary elections
.
In 1995, the newly elected Parliament adopted a new Constitution. Georgia now has a semi-presidential system
with a unicameral parliament
.
In 2011 Mikheil Saakashvili
the president of Georgia signed the amendment of constitution which located the parliament in Kutaisi
.
The Parliament is chaired by its speaker. Zurab Zhvania
held the post of speaker from November 1995 until he broke with then-President Eduard Shevardnadze
and resigned from the post on November 1, 2001. At the close of a "marathon" session, Nino Burjanadze
was elected speaker on November 10, 2001. She was the speaker until the parliament elected in 2008 convened, as she had chosen not to run in the 2008 parliamentary elections. Davit Bakradze, who headed the ruling National Movement's party list in the 2008 parliamentary elections, was elected Speaker of the 2008 parliament.
, a Parliamentary committee, a Parliamentary faction, a member of the parliament, the supreme representative bodies of Abkhazia
and Ajaria, or not less than 30,000 electors have the right to initiate legislation.
Parliamentary committees and the President are the chief initiators of legislative proposals in Georgia . A draft law, prepared on the committee or received through legislative initiative, is discussed at a meeting of the relevant committee. The draft, with the view of the committee or explanatory note attached, is passed on to other Parliamentary committees and factions. It is published in the "Parliamentary Reports", a special issue of the Parliament.
Before the committee decides to submit the draft law to the plenary session it arranges a committee reading. The reading is conducted in public. Information about the committee reading is disseminated through the mass media by the Parliamentary Press-Center, at least 7 days in advance. If the committee decides that the draft is ready for discussion at the plenary meeting, it is passed on to the Staff of the Parliament. The latter sees to it that the draft is put on the agenda of the Bureau. When the draft is initiated by the President of Georgia, the supreme representative bodies of Abkhazia
and Ajaria, or a constituency, the Parliamentary Bureau refers the draft to the relevant committee.
The Parliament considers the draft law in three readings.
First reading - At the first reading of the draft its general principles and main propositions are discussed. If the draft passes the first reading, it is sent to the relevant committee (committees), with all the remarks to be taken into consideration.
Second reading - The draft - revised and discussed with account of the remarks made by the Parliament - is submitted to a Parliamentary session for the second
reading. At the second reading the draft is discussed by sections, chapters, clauses or parts of clauses, each being put to the vote.
Third reading - For the third reading the members of Parliament are supplied with versions of the draft. They may introduce only editorial remarks, after
which the draft law, passed by the Parliament, is submitted to the President of Georgia, who signs it into law and has it published. The law is published in an official organ, entering into force on the 15th day from publication, unless some other term is indicated in the law.
Period of sessions
The Parliament meets twice a year: for the spring and autumn sessions. The spring session opens on the first Tuesday of February and closes on the last Friday of June. The autumn session opens on the first Tuesday of September and closes on the third Friday of December.
The Parliamentary session is planned for a fortnightly cycle, made up of plenary and committee sittings. The first week is given to plenary sessions, while the second to committee work and meeting with constituencies.
Legislature
A legislature is a kind of deliberative assembly with the power to pass, amend, and repeal laws. The law created by a legislature is called legislation or statutory law. In addition to enacting laws, legislatures usually have exclusive authority to raise or lower taxes and adopt the budget and...
of Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
. It is unicameral and has 150 members, known as deputies, from which 75 members are proportional representatives and 75 are elected through single-member district plurality system, representing their constituencies. All members of the Parliament are elected for four years on the basis of universal human suffrage
Universal suffrage
Universal suffrage consists of the extension of the right to vote to adult citizens as a whole, though it may also mean extending said right to minors and non-citizens...
.
The Constitution of Georgia
Constitution of Georgia (country)
The Constitution of Georgia is the supreme law of Georgia. It was approved by the Parliament of Georgia on August 24 1995. It entered into force on October 17...
grants Parliament of Georgia central legislative power, which is limited by the Parliaments of the autonomous republics of Adjara
Adjara
Adjara , officially the Autonomous Republic of Adjara , is an autonomous republic of Georgia.Adjara is located in the southwestern corner of Georgia, bordered by Turkey to the south and the eastern end of the Black Sea...
and Abkhazia
Abkhazia
Abkhazia is a disputed political entity on the eastern coast of the Black Sea and the south-western flank of the Caucasus.Abkhazia considers itself an independent state, called the Republic of Abkhazia or Apsny...
.
Slightly predating the Magna Carta
Magna Carta
Magna Carta is an English charter, originally issued in the year 1215 and reissued later in the 13th century in modified versions, which included the most direct challenges to the monarch's authority to date. The charter first passed into law in 1225...
in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, an idea of limiting the royal power and creating a parliament
Parliament
A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...
ary-type body of government was conceived among the aristocrats and citizens in the 12th century Kingdom of Georgia, during the reign of Queen Tamar
Tamar of Georgia
Tamar , of the Bagrationi dynasty, was Queen Regnant of Georgia from 1184 to 1213. Tamar presided over the "Golden age" of the medieval Georgian monarchy...
, the first Georgian
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
female monarch.
History
In the view Queen Tamar's oppositionists and their leader, Qutlu ArslanQutlu Arslan
Qutlu Arslan was the 12th-century Georgian politician and statesman sometimes referred to as the Georgian Simon de Montfort for his rebellion, in circa 1184, against the unlimited royal power.A Georgianized Kipchak Qutlu Arslan was the 12th-century Georgian politician and statesman sometimes...
(a Georgian Simon de Montfort
Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester
Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester, 1st Earl of Chester , sometimes referred to as Simon V de Montfort to distinguish him from other Simon de Montforts, was an Anglo-Norman nobleman. He led the barons' rebellion against King Henry III of England during the Second Barons' War of 1263-4, and...
), the first Georgian Parliament was to be formed of two "Chambers": a) Darbazi – or assembly of aristocrats and influential citizens who would meet from time to time to take decisions on the processes occurring in the country, the implementation of these decisions devolving on the monarch b) Karavi – a body in permanent session between the meetings of the Darbazi. The confrontation ended in the victory of the supporters of unlimited royal power. Qutlu Arslan was arrested on the Queen’s order.
Subsequently, it was only in 1906 that the Georgians were afforded the opportunity of sending their representatives to a Parliamentary body of Government, to the Second State Duma
State Duma
The State Duma , common abbreviation: Госду́ма ) in the Russian Federation is the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia , the upper house being the Federation Council of Russia. The Duma headquarters is located in central Moscow, a few steps from Manege Square. Its members are referred to...
(from 1801 Georgia had been incorporated in the Russian Empire).
Georgian deputies to the Duma were Noe Zhordania
Noe Zhordania
Noe Zhordania was a Georgian journalist and Menshevik politician. He played an eminent role in the Social Democratic revolutionary movement in Imperial Russia, and later chaired the government of the Democratic Republic of Georgia from July 24, 1918 until March 18, 1921, when the Bolshevik Soviet...
(later the President of independent Georgia in 1918-21), Ilia Chavchavadze (founder of the Georgian National Movement), Irakli Tsereteli
Irakli Tsereteli
Irakli Tsereteli was a Georgian politician, one of the leaders of the Russian Social-Democratic Labour Party and later the Georgian Mensheviks....
(leader of the Social-Democratic Faction in the Second Duma, later Minister of Internal Affairs of Russia’s Provisional Government), Karlo Chkheidze (leader of the Menshevik
Menshevik
The Mensheviks were a faction of the Russian revolutionary movement that emerged in 1904 after a dispute between Vladimir Lenin and Julius Martov, both members of the Russian Social-Democratic Labour Party. The dispute originated at the Second Congress of that party, ostensibly over minor issues...
Faction in the Fourth State Duma, Chairman of the first convocation of the Central Executive Committee of the All-Russian Workers’ and Soldiers’ Deputies in 1917, and Chairman of the Trans-Caucasian Seym in 1918), and others.
In 1918 the first Georgian National Parliament was founded in the already independent Georgia
Democratic Republic of Georgia
The Democratic Republic of Georgia , 1918–1921, was the first modern establishment of a Republic of Georgia.The DRG was created after the collapse of the Russian Empire that began with the Russian Revolution of 1917...
. In 1921 the Parliament adopted the first Georgian Constitution. However, shortly after the adoption of the Constitution, Georgia was occupied by the Bolshevik Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
. This was followed by a gap of 69 years in the Parliamentary Government in Georgian history. The construction of the parliament building started in 1938 and completed in 1953, when Georgia was still a part of Soviet Union. It was designed by architects Victor Kokorin and Giorgi Lezhava.
The first multiparty Elections in the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
were held in Georgia on October 28, 1990. The elected Supreme Soviet (the name of the simulated and pseudo-Parliament in the former Soviet Union) proclaimed the independence of Georgia). On May 26, 1991 Georgia’s population elected the Chairman of the Supreme Council Zviad Gamsakhurdia
Zviad Gamsakhurdia
Zviad Gamsakhurdia was a dissident, scientist and writer, who became the first democratically elected President of the Republic of Georgia in the post-Soviet era...
as President of the country.
The tension between the ruling and opposition parties gradually intensified, which in 1991-92 developed into an armed conflict. The President left the country, the Supreme Soviet ceased to function and power was taken over by the Military Council.
In 1992, former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Soviet Union Eduard Shevardnadze
Eduard Shevardnadze
Eduard Shevardnadze is a former Soviet, and later, Georgian statesman from the height to the end of the Cold War. He served as President of Georgia from 1995 to 2003, and as First Secretary of the Georgian Communist Party , from 1972 to 1985. Shevardnadze was responsible for many top decisions on...
returned to Georgia, assuming Chairmanship of the Military Council which was reconstituted into a State Security Council
National Security Council of Georgia
The National Security Council of Georgia is an advisory body for the President of Georgia dealing with matters of national security. The current Secretary of the National Security Council of Georgia is Giga Bokeria.-Legal authority:...
. The State Council restored Georgia’s Constitution of 1921, announcing August 4, 1992 as the day of parliamentary elections
Elections in Georgia (country)
Elections in Georgia gives information on elections and election results in Georgia. An election is a process in which a vote is held to elect candidates to an office...
.
In 1995, the newly elected Parliament adopted a new Constitution. Georgia now has a semi-presidential system
Semi-presidential system
The semi-presidential system is a system of government in which a president and a prime minister are both active participants in the day-to-day administration of the state...
with a unicameral parliament
Parliament
A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...
.
In 2011 Mikheil Saakashvili
Mikheil Saakashvili
Mikheil Saakashvili is a Georgian politician, the third and current President of Georgia and leader of the United National Movement Party.Involved in the national politics since 1995, Saakashvili became president on 25 January 2004 after President Eduard Shevardnadze resigned in a November 2003...
the president of Georgia signed the amendment of constitution which located the parliament in Kutaisi
Kutaisi
Kutaisi is Georgia's second largest city and the capital of the western region of Imereti. It is 221 km to the west of Tbilisi.-Geography:...
.
Structure
The Georgian Parliament is the country’s Supreme representative body which effects legislative authority, determines the main directions of the country’s home and foreign policy, controls the activity of the Government within limits defined by the Constitution and exercises other rights.The Parliament is chaired by its speaker. Zurab Zhvania
Zurab Zhvania
Zurab Zhvania was a prominent Georgian politician, having served as Prime Minister of Georgia and Speaker of the Parliament of Georgia as well as Minister without Portfolio. Zhvania assumed premiership on 18 February 2004 and remained on the position until his death on 3 February 2005...
held the post of speaker from November 1995 until he broke with then-President Eduard Shevardnadze
Eduard Shevardnadze
Eduard Shevardnadze is a former Soviet, and later, Georgian statesman from the height to the end of the Cold War. He served as President of Georgia from 1995 to 2003, and as First Secretary of the Georgian Communist Party , from 1972 to 1985. Shevardnadze was responsible for many top decisions on...
and resigned from the post on November 1, 2001. At the close of a "marathon" session, Nino Burjanadze
Nino Burjanadze
Nino Burjanadze is a Georgian politician and lawyer who served as Chairperson of the Parliament of Georgia from November 2001 to June 2008...
was elected speaker on November 10, 2001. She was the speaker until the parliament elected in 2008 convened, as she had chosen not to run in the 2008 parliamentary elections. Davit Bakradze, who headed the ruling National Movement's party list in the 2008 parliamentary elections, was elected Speaker of the 2008 parliament.
Passage of a Draft Law in the Parliament
According to the Constitution, the President of GeorgiaPresident of Georgia
The President of Georgia is the head of state, supreme commander-in-chief and holder of the highest office within the Government of Georgia. Executive power is split between the President and the Prime Minister, who is the head of government...
, a Parliamentary committee, a Parliamentary faction, a member of the parliament, the supreme representative bodies of Abkhazia
Abkhazia
Abkhazia is a disputed political entity on the eastern coast of the Black Sea and the south-western flank of the Caucasus.Abkhazia considers itself an independent state, called the Republic of Abkhazia or Apsny...
and Ajaria, or not less than 30,000 electors have the right to initiate legislation.
Parliamentary committees and the President are the chief initiators of legislative proposals in Georgia . A draft law, prepared on the committee or received through legislative initiative, is discussed at a meeting of the relevant committee. The draft, with the view of the committee or explanatory note attached, is passed on to other Parliamentary committees and factions. It is published in the "Parliamentary Reports", a special issue of the Parliament.
Before the committee decides to submit the draft law to the plenary session it arranges a committee reading. The reading is conducted in public. Information about the committee reading is disseminated through the mass media by the Parliamentary Press-Center, at least 7 days in advance. If the committee decides that the draft is ready for discussion at the plenary meeting, it is passed on to the Staff of the Parliament. The latter sees to it that the draft is put on the agenda of the Bureau. When the draft is initiated by the President of Georgia, the supreme representative bodies of Abkhazia
Abkhazia
Abkhazia is a disputed political entity on the eastern coast of the Black Sea and the south-western flank of the Caucasus.Abkhazia considers itself an independent state, called the Republic of Abkhazia or Apsny...
and Ajaria, or a constituency, the Parliamentary Bureau refers the draft to the relevant committee.
The Parliament considers the draft law in three readings.
First reading - At the first reading of the draft its general principles and main propositions are discussed. If the draft passes the first reading, it is sent to the relevant committee (committees), with all the remarks to be taken into consideration.
Second reading - The draft - revised and discussed with account of the remarks made by the Parliament - is submitted to a Parliamentary session for the second
reading. At the second reading the draft is discussed by sections, chapters, clauses or parts of clauses, each being put to the vote.
Third reading - For the third reading the members of Parliament are supplied with versions of the draft. They may introduce only editorial remarks, after
which the draft law, passed by the Parliament, is submitted to the President of Georgia, who signs it into law and has it published. The law is published in an official organ, entering into force on the 15th day from publication, unless some other term is indicated in the law.
Period of sessions
The Parliament meets twice a year: for the spring and autumn sessions. The spring session opens on the first Tuesday of February and closes on the last Friday of June. The autumn session opens on the first Tuesday of September and closes on the third Friday of December.
The Parliamentary session is planned for a fortnightly cycle, made up of plenary and committee sittings. The first week is given to plenary sessions, while the second to committee work and meeting with constituencies.