Human Rights Defenders Celebrated International Day in Support of Torture Victims

Mariam Imerlishvili, Eka Lomidze

On June 26, Georgian human rights organizations traditionally celebrated the International Day in Support of Torture Victims. The member organizations of the Human Rights House Tbilisi – the Human Rights Center, The Georgian Centre for Psychosocial and Medical Rehabilitation of Torture Victims, the Union “Sapari” and the Article 42 of the Constitution organized a joint event in support of torture victims in the April 9 Park (former Aleksandrov Park), Tbilisi.

90-minute event was continued by a performance in front of the Tbilisi Youth Palace in Rustaveli Avenue. The participants imitated scenes from torture facts. With it, the demonstrators wanted to remember the inhuman treatment of demonstrators by the MIA riot police on May 26, 2011.

“With our demonstration we want to remind the government of Georgia about the people, who became torture victims in our country. They urgently need the attention from the authority,” said Ucha Nanuashvili, executive director of the Human Rights Center and added “A month ago, on May 26, several dozens of people subjected to torture and inhuman treatment. We want the society to know more about this problem.”

Torture is one of the most brutal violations of human rights that are prohibited by international human rights documents, among them: International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (Art.4), Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and Customary International Law.

Shorena Latatia from the Human Rights House Tbilisi spoke about the importance of the day: “With today’s performance-demonstration we wanted to call upon the government to prevent torture and inhuman treatment in Georgia, to investigate all torture facts and punish perpetrators for similar crimes. We wanted to show to the society that similar facts still occur though torture is prohibited in our country as well as in other countries.”

Psychologist Nato Zazashvili from the Union “Sapari” said: “June 26 is the International Day in Support of Torture Victims who were subjected to torture in various situations. I think, it is a very important day. Although few people participate in our demonstration, it is important that we still remember these problems and peoples.”

Observers from the project on Monitoring the Assembly and Manifestation implemented by the Human Rights Center and three young strangers, whose personality was impossible to identify, observed the ongoing demonstration and performance of human rights defenders in Tbilisi.