11:34, 25 April 2020

Rights defenders call on Georgian authorities to help street vendors

A street vendor selling flowers in Tbilisi. April 2020. Photo by Inna Kukudjanova for the "Caucasian Knot"

The authorities are obliged to find ways to organize street trading under the state of emergency and help small vendors, who have lost their incomes due to the imposed restrictions, the Centre Human Rights for Training and Monitoring has stated.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that Georgia introduced the state of emergency on March 21; and it will last until May 22.

On April 23, in Tbilisi, the police dispersed a rally of the "Girchi" Party against the extension of the state of emergency. The organizers pointed to the need to lift restrictions detrimental to the economy – in particular, to open food marketplaces.

In Tbilisi, it is allowed to trade foodstuffs only. Yulia, a pensioner, said that with the introduction of the state of emergency, she was forced to stop trading, and now, together with her unemployed daughter, lives on pension payments only.

A street vendor from the city of Gori said that he live alone, participates in the poverty alleviation programme and lives on his street income. "I'm left without a piece of bread," he said, complaining about the absence of help from the state.

Due to the ban on street trading, many families have lost their only incomes and are unable to payback their loans, the NGO "Centre for Human Rights Training and Monitoring" has stated, noting that marketplaces are closed, but chain supermarkets continue working.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on April 24, 2019 at 04:58 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.

Author: Inna Kukudjanova

Source: CK correspondent