Chairperson of the influential human rights advocacy Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association (GYLA) Ana Dolidze further stepped up her criticism of the authorities on January 13 by saying that measures undertaken by officials against GYLA is “an attack against the entire civil society sector.”

One group of members of GYLA, which is a membership-based organization, demanded reforms and the resignation of chairperson Ana Dolidze on January 9, accusing Dolidze and the current leadership of being politically-motivated and being associated with the opposition Republican Party. These members are mainly officials and persons associated with the authorities.

“This is a political attack against the entire civil sector, which aims at discrediting it because the civil sector says the truth, which seems to be dangerous for the authorities,” Ana Dolidze told reporters upon her arrival from the United States. 
 
On January 12 a group of civil society organizations, including Article 42 of the Constitution, the Georgian Association of Judges, the International Center for Conflicts and Negotiations and Former Political Prisoners for Human Rights, issued a joint statement saying that the authorities are trying to silence GYLA, which has always voiced “well-founded criticism” over the “authorities’ undemocratic steps.”