Prisoners Die in Custodies Because of Inactivity of Penitentiary Department

The Human Rights Center is concerned about the situation in the detention settings of Georgia. Recently, sick inmates have faced serious problems. The Human Rights Center has studied several cases and you can see them on the following links:
http://humanrights.ge/index.php?a=article&id=4230&lang=en
http://humanrights.ge/index.php?a=article&id=4204&lang=en

The Human Rights Center calls upon media and non-governmental organizations to be more concerned about the problem.

According to the Center, inmates die in the custodies because of inactivity of the penitentiary department. Although Georgian legislation allows sick prisoner to leave the custody early, even mortal prisoners cannot leave the detention setting.

Convicted people with acute forms of tuberculosis and heart diseases face most serious problems in the prisons because of inactivity of the penitentiary department.

Another problem is that neither penitentiary department nor ministry of penitentiary, probation and legal aid have published statistic of mortality among prisoners on their websites.

Former Public Defender of Georgia Sozar Subari confirmed that the problem is extremely urgent. He stated that medical assistance in the prison does not work at all or is not available for every prisoner. If medical assistance is available in the custody it is very poor and of low level.

Journalists and lawyers for the Human Rights Center studied several cases of similar facts at the detention settings and they could be good examples of the overall situation in the Georgian penitentiary system. More precisely, Tamar Batiashvili, resident of Dedoplistskaro district has been unsuccessfully urging to postpone imprisonment of her son who has been serving his sentence for 7 months already.

Robert Kharaishvili has cancer on the throat. After operation a pipe was installed in his throat and pus is draining from it. His health conditions are getting worse day by day. The examination showed that he has C hepatitis, tuberculosis and other diseases too.
 
Besides that, the prisoner is discontent about medical treatment at the prison. Doctors change his bandages late and he suffers from pains. Although painkillers were injected, now injection places got swollen and doctors do not give iodine liquid to treat the swollen places. The doctors deny the complaints of Kharaishvili and say they do their utmost to help the sick prisoner. “The state does not allow us to postpone the imprisonment. It is necessary to provide the conclusion of complex expertise though it is expensive and the family cannot afford it (it costs 700 GEL). Kharaishvili has served 2/3 of his imprisonment and he can be released from prison according to the Georgian law,” said the attorney of Kharaishvili.

The attorney has petitioned to the Ministry of Penitentiary, Probation and Legal Aid and requested to postpone the sentence of Kharaishvili but the Ministry has not replied yet.