"I can't tell you. I don't want to believe that the judge is under the influence of his wife," said the Speaker of Parliament, Shalva Papuashvili, in response to a journalist's question about whether his wife is "one of the factors" in the decision of Judge Vladimer Khuchua. After the judge of the Tetritskaro District Court made a precedent-setting decision and found a violation of the secrecy of the vote, the government's propaganda media spread the information that the judge's wife, Elza Gurgenidze, is a "radical opposition activist."
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According to Shalva Papuashvili, the decision of 22 judges, who view the issue differently, serves as a counterbalance to the judgment from Tetritskaro.
"You know that GYLA (Georgia Young Lawyers' Association) was the complainant regarding the breach of confidentiality. It is important to emphasize that no complaint was filed on this issue on the day of the election. We did not hear any statements that day. They only remembered it five days after the election. GYLA has appealed to all districts, to all district commissions, and to the courts, without any specific violations being recorded, including during the trial process; they have generally appealed everywhere. 23 judges heard this appeal in different districts. 22 ruled that confidentiality was not breached, while one judge yesterday found that confidentiality had been breached. After that, all 23 cases will go to the Court of Appeal, and the court will make a final decision.
The fact that one judge interpreted the issue this way is counterbalanced by the 22 judges and their 22 decisions, which see the issue differently. To be honest, there is also common sense behind this.
If we follow the logic that such an interpretation is considered a violation of secrecy, then the presidential elections in Moldova, the parliamentary elections in Lithuania, the elections in Poland, and many other countries should be annulled. In these cases, we can directly observe that not even an envelope is used; the circled ballot is typically taken out and thrown into a semi-transparent box, where it is clear what choice the voter made," said Shalva Papuashvili.
On November 4, late in the evening, Judge Vladimer Khuchua of the Tetritskaro District Court, unlike all other district courts, made a precedent-setting decision, confirming the violation of vote secrecy and declaring the (electronic) results of 30 election precincts in Tetritskaro and Tsalka invalid. The judge requested a counting machine, a ballot, a marker, and a framed envelope for the hearing. During the court session, a technical inspection was conducted, which established that when ballots are placed in the machine, the choice made on the back side is visible.
The Central Election Commission calls the decision unjustified and claims that the voter's vote was kept secret during the parliamentary elections. In particular, according to their statement, the secrecy of the vote was ensured by a special frame form, the use of which "in accordance with the instructions excludes the identification of the voter's will."
