Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with her Georgian counterpart on the treatment of (a) political opponents and (b) journalists in that country.

I remain gravely concerned by Georgia's democratic backsliding, attacks on the opposition and journalists. The former Foreign Secretary's 11 July statement condemned politically motivated detentions of opposition leaders in Georgia. On 6 August, the UK, with the Media Freedom Coalition, condemned the politically motivated sentencing of journalist Mzia Amaglobeli to two years in prison. Georgia must reverse course, uphold European values, and protect civil society and press freedom.