On June 12-13, 2018, training was held for the employees of the Public Defender's Office about the role of the Office in protecting the rights of refugees and statelesspersons, as well as the activities of the respective state agencies and international organizations.

A representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in the South Caucasus spoke about the mandate of the organization and its activities in Georgia, and discussed the universal principles of the 1951Refugee Convention, including exemption from criminal liability, confidentiality, no expulsion and access to asylum. In contrast to previous years, international standards of internal displacement, as well as local and international standards of statelessness, were also discussed.

Representatives of the Ministry of Internally Displaced Persons from the Occupied Territories, Accommodation and Refugees of Georgia discussed the positive trends and novelties in the development of the asylum system, the Law of Georgia on International Protection that took effect in February 2017 and the bilateral order signed with the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which regulates identification of asylum-seekers on the state border and exchange of information between the two agencies. They also focused on the issue of integration of refugees and the performance of the Integration Center that was opened in 2017.

The event was organized within the framework of the project "Support to the Public Defender's Office in Studying the Situation of Asylum-Seekers and international Protected Persons" with financial support of the Regional Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees in the South Caucasus.