Web Portal on Human Rights in Georgia
ARTICLES
2010-06-14
“Nobody Has Right to Treat Us Like Slaves,” Workers Arrested Because of Strike
Protest demonstration of the workers of Kutaisi
Metallurgic Factory ended with the detention of 7 people last week. The
strikers protested against the poor conditions in the enterprise and
against salary arrears; they refused to enter the factory and to
continue working.
2010-06-14
Attorneys Cannot Meet Their Clients in New Prison
We wrote about the opening ceremony of the new prison # 1
in Rustavi several days ago. According to the plan, the prison was to
be opened in 7 months, but the ceremony took place on June 1 under
PR-Ceremony of the National Movement and by participation of the
president Saakashvili.2010-06-11
Alliance Sues “Thieves of Votes” at the Prosecutor’s Office in Kutaisi
Former single mandate candidate of the Alliance for
Georgia Nato Katamadze appeals to the Kutaisi prosecutor’s office and
requests criminal investigation on the violations. Katamadze requests to
investigate the violation incidents observed during the municipal
elections of 2010 and to punish the offenders – so-called thieves of
votes.
2010-06-11
Georgia's Muddled Elections
Does President Saakashvili
really deserve international plaudits for his party’s decisive victory
in Georgia’s elections on 30 May 2010? What Jakub Parusinski saw
himself, and heard from fellow election monitors, suggests that
procedural violations and deliberate fraud were more widespread and
organised than first appeared
2010-06-11
Municipal Elections in Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti Region Were Peaceful but Full of Violations
Attempts to vote without IDs, lack of election booths,
spoilt marking apparatus – this is short list of the violations which
were observed by the observers of the Human Rights Center in
Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti region on May 30 during the municipal elections.
2010-06-11
Elections in the Suburb of Kobuleti – With Propaganda of the Ruling Party
I observed the municipal elections at the polling station
# 29 in Kobuleti election district # 81. I selected the polling station
for several reasons – it was located in the building of the village
administration; as for the election HQ of the National Movement, it was
opened in the house of the former village governor Davit Inaishvili.
Besides that, chairman of the Kobuleti municipal board Sulkhan Takidze
is registered as a voter at the precinct. The polling station was
situated in the suburb of the election district and the observing
organizations paid less attention to it.
2010-06-11
USA Considers Situation in Georgia and Poor Democracy in Russia as Failure of US Foreign Policy
The USA considers that situation in Georgia and poor
democracy in Russia is failure of the US foreign policy.
2010-06-10
“Nationalist” Judges in Protection of Fraud
Tbilisi Appeal Court decided on the arguments about the
results of the polling station in Variani village, Gori district in
favor of the election administration. More precisely, they did not
change the judgment of the judge of the Gori district court and former
district prosecutor Nikoloz Marsagishvili. The court was discussing the
suit of the observer of the Human Rights Center. In fact, within the
limited 4 days, the court demanded the observer to preserve all
procedures which are necessary for huge cases prolonged for many years.
Instead, they did not envisage the violations which were observed during
the counting of votes at the PS.
2010-06-10
Workers on Strike Returned to Their Work under Threat of Police
Humanrights.ge published an article about the strike of
the workers at the GeoSteel Ltd in Rustavi two weeks ago. The workers
claimed they would not stop strike until the factory administration
satisfies their requirements. A worker of the GeoSteel told us: “Our
main problem is low salaries, and lack of toilets and drinking water in
the factory. We work two days and nights per week and our salary is 300
GEL. It is slavery. They know that our country is poor, people have hard
lives and they take advantage of our situation.”
2010-06-09
Saakashvili Urged Sarkozy Meeting during Six Months
He has been urging Nicola Sarkozy meeting for six months
already. The Élysée Palace finally agreed to satisfy the request of the
president of Georgia. Leader of Georgia will remain in Paris until
Wednesday and prime-minister of Russia, Vladimer Putin, will replace him
in France.
2010-06-09
Refugees from Chechnya VS UNHCR
Chechen refugees sheltering in Pankisi Gorge blame the UN
High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in their discrimination on
ethnic grounds. According to the refugees, the UNHCR promised each
family to allocate 8-10 thousand USD if they naturalize in Georgia.
After this offer, the Chechen refugees declined the refugee status and
obtained the citizenship of Georgia; however, the UNHCR did not keep
their promises.
2010-06-08
Tbilisi City Hall Hides Unreasonable Expenditures
MP from the opposition party Giorgi Tsagareishvili
imposes the responsibility for the “criminal” activities of the Tbilisi
mayor on the people who voted for Gigi Ugulava on May 30.
2010-06-08
President Boasts about Rapidly and Badly Constructed Prisons
New detention setting # 1 of general and strict regime
was opened in Rustavi. On June 1, the president Mikheil Saakashvili
personally attended the opening ceremony and reminded the invited guests
of the situation in old detention settings. “Here criminals ran
everything. Inmates did not have food. Everything was sent from outside
and the crimes in Georgia were planned from the prison. The prisoners
estimated sums for the return of stolen cars; they planned attacks on
businessmen. All in all, it was place for anti-sanitary, disorder and
illegality in Georgia.”
2010-06-08
Ministry Has Not Resolved Problems of IDPs in Former Military Hospital
Initially, 1 500 IDPs were sheltered in the building of
the former Russian military hospital in Isani district in Tbilisi.
Nowadays, about 600 IDPs live there. 390 of them are so-called new IDPs
(displaced as a result of the war in August of 2008) and 210 so-called
old IDPs (displaced during the armed conflicts in 1990s). Although more
than one and half year has passed since the August war, the IDPs living
in this building have not received an IDP status and single money
allowance yet.
2010-06-08
Kutaisi Car-Factory –Myth or Reality
About one year ago, the
president of Georgia announced to the Georgian population on TV that
“Kutaisi car-factory will obtain its old functions back. The work-shops
will start working, Georgian product will be produced and thousands
workers will be employed.” To make his statement more convincing,
Mikheil Saakashvili showed a cardboard box with the inscription “Made in
Georgia” and called upon everybody to start working in the factory.
Thus, the president started to eradicate the unemployment in Kutaisi. A
year later, the car-factory looks much worse than ever.
2010-06-07
Mysterious Elections
Several complaints were written in Samtskhe-Javakheti
region during the municipal elections on May 30, 2010. The Human Rights
Center collected data about the ongoing situation in the polling
stations throughout the region; the center found out how active the
voters were and what the observers said about the elections.
2010-06-07
Labor Party, Conservative Party and Party “Freedom” Join Requests of the Public Orthodox Movement
“I am also Orthodox! Come and arrest me!!!” – Public
Orthodox Movement (POM) organized a demonstration-briefing at the office
of the Liberty Institute on June 3. Their main requests were the
release of their members, who were arrested on May 7, and the
abolishment of the Liberty Institute.
2010-06-07
Adventure of the “Landing Party” Sent to Lagodekhi District
I observed the municipal elections in the polling station of the Kabali village in Lagodekhi district. My first complaint, written at the PS # 18 on the violation of ballot procedures, caused noise. “Do not write complaint! You are irresponsible person. He is captious. Don’t you know other places except Kabali; why have you come only here?” – the chairperson of the polling station Adalat Sardarov was shouting at me. The first complaint was followed by second, third, fourth and finally I wrote 16 complaints only at that polling station.2010-06-04
“If You Do not Stop, Your Father Will Lose Priest Parish”
On May 30, representatives of the Human Rights Center
and Transparency International –Georgia observed the municipal
elections in several villages of Shida Kartli. The observers actively
worked in the village of Didi Ateni, Tiniskhidi, Pkhvenisi, Nikozi and
Variani polling stations from the early morning.
2010-06-04
“Government Improved Methods of Election Rigging”
2010 municipal elections have become topic of urgent discussions from the very beginning. Despite that, today in Kutaisi, like entire Georgia, the ruling party celebrates the victory. The government assessed the municipal elections as a step towards the democracy like all previous elections. The voters (not to say anything about the opposition parties) have different opinion; they think the reality is completely different – the elections were carried out through serious violations in the country and Kutaisi was not exception at all.OTHER NEWS
Interior Ministry Says it 'Foiled Terror Plot'
The video, released on behalf of the Taliban, was posted on Internet from Georgia - Irakli Gharibashvili
People Will Be Discharged from Fines for Having Illegally Constructed Buildings
11 Officers of Senaki Brigade Questioned in Akhalaia’s Case
Majoritarian Candidates Lost Interim Elections Received 5 000 Lari Back
Archive
BLOG
Historic Review of Georgian Political Advertisement
In 2005, American researchers estimated that political advertisements on TV have short (two-week) impact on voters. But the result is so rapid andDetailed...
Pre-election Advertisement Promises
Quality and Purpose of Political Advertisements
EDITORIAL
Human Rights Center to Monitor Trials on Former Senior Governmental Officials
How the detention process of former senior officials is going on; whether political motivation is detected in it and will the new initiativeDetailed...
As a result of international oppression, State Audit Office and National Bureau of Enforcement postponed the repressions
The August war- who is guilty?
POLL
What do you think, shall the archive of illegally obtained operative materials be destroyed or not?