Rebecca Harms, the Chair of the Delegation to the Euronest PA makes an announcement on decision of the European Court.

" - I am deeply concerned about the Georgian Supreme Court

Grand Chamber ruling of 2 March 2017 on the attribution of property of Rustavi2

Television. This decision could endanger the fragile balance of media pluralism in

Georgia. I therefore welcome the European Court of Human Rights decision, on

3 March, to temporarily (until 8 March) suspend the enforcement of the Supreme

Court"s ruling and ask for its full implementation.

I appreciate the decision of the Georgian Government to respect this suspension order.

Pluralism and freedom of the press are essential for democracy, Georgia"s democratic

reform process and its pro-European aspiration. In order to guarantee media pluralism

and media independency, it is crucial to achieve full transparency of media ownership

and financing. Media and press should not be controlled by the Government or those

close to it. Opposition voices must continue to be heard on Georgian broadcast media.

In this difficult ,"- is stated in the announcement.