OSCE media freedom representative Dunja Mijatović expressed disappointment at Georgian Parliament’s failure to fully compose new board of trustees of the Georgian Public Broadcaster (GPB).

“I am disappointed to learn that the Parliament once again failed to complete the selection despite a competent and transparent competition held by the Public Selection Commission,” Mijatović said in a statement on January 24.
 
“I call on the Georgian Parliament to make a timely decision. I believe the new board should revitalize the broadcaster and contribute to the free flow of information in the country,” she said and expressed hope that the GPB will be an independent broadcaster, free from political and commercial influences.
 
Only four members in 9-seat board were elected by the Parliament as a result of two rounds of vote – first in late December and the second one on January 23. Lawmakers, mainly from the GD parliamentary majority group, rejected most of the 27 candidates vetted by an independent selection commission, triggering protest of many media and civil society activists.

After the first unsuccessful vote in late December in the Parliament, OSCE media freedom representative, Dunja Mijatović, wrote to parliament speaker, David Usupashvili, and expressed her concern regarding the failure to elect new members to the board.