Amendments have been introduced to the Rules on the Accreditation of Representatives of Mass Media in the Parliament of Georgia, approved by Order No. 1/31/23 of the Speaker of the Parliament of Georgia dated 6 February 2023. The amendments were developed based on the rules governing media accreditation in the European Parliament.

The amendment to Article 3 of the Accreditation Rules establishes new procedures concerning the submission of applications for parliamentary journalist accreditation.

Under the amendment, the deadlines for submitting applications for parliamentary journalist accreditation shall not apply to a media outlet whose accreditation was revoked before its expiration date due to repeated violations of the requirements established by the Rules by its accredited journalist, taking into account the gravity of the violation, and which was temporarily restricted from applying for parliamentary journalist accreditation. Upon expiration of the restriction period, the media outlet will be entitled to submit an application to the Speaker of the Parliament of Georgia at any time, but no later than 1 November of the accreditation year.

Taking into account the regulations in force in the European Parliament, amendments were also made to Article 11 of the Accreditation Rules, which defines the grounds for the early revocation of accreditation of accredited media outlets.

Specifically, where an accredited journalist of a media outlet repeatedly violates the requirements established by the Rules, and considering the seriousness of the violation, the accreditation of the relevant media outlet may be revoked before its expiration date, and the outlet may be prohibited, for a period of up to one year, from applying to the Speaker of Parliament for accreditation under these Rules.

Furthermore, if a journalist representing a non-accredited media outlet repeatedly violates the requirements established by the Rules, that journalist may likewise, depending on the gravity of the violation, be prohibited for up to one year from applying to the Speaker of Parliament for accreditation.

In addition, a new ground for the early revocation of a media outlet’s accreditation has been introduced: where the activities of the accredited media outlet are no longer related to covering the work of the Parliament of Georgia.

By order of the Speaker of Parliament, amendments were also made to Article 12 of the Accreditation Rules. According to the amendment, if an accredited journalist repeatedly violates the requirements established by the Rules, and considering the seriousness of the violation, the journalist’s accreditation will be revoked before its expiration date. The relevant media outlet may then be prohibited, for a period of up to one year, from including that journalist on the list of journalists nominated for parliamentary accreditation. At the same time, a non-accredited media outlet may be prohibited, for up to one year, from applying to the Speaker of Parliament for the issuance of a one-time special accreditation for that journalist. This provision is likewise analogous to the regulations in force in the European Parliament.

The amendments also affect Article 13 of the Accreditation Rules, which regulates the suspension of accreditation for accredited journalists.

Under the amendment, repeated violations of the Rules by an accredited journalist, taking into account the seriousness of the violation, may result in the early revocation of the journalist’s accreditation and may also affect the validity of the accreditation granted to the journalist’s media outlet.

In light of the European Parliament’s experience, amendments were introduced to Paragraph 2 of Article 15 of the Accreditation Rules. A new obligation has been added to the list of duties of accredited journalists, requiring them: “to demonstrate due respect for the dignity and personal space of all persons present in the Palace of the Parliament of Georgia and to take proper care of parliamentary property”.

The rules introduced through the Speaker’s order amending the Rules on the Accreditation of Representatives of Mass Media in the Parliament of Georgia are similar to those in force in the European Parliament. Those rules, adopted by decision of the Bureau of the European Parliament, regulate the conduct and working conditions of media representatives within the premises of the European Union’s highest representative institution.