Human Rights Committee of the Parliament Dedicated First Session to the Issue of Political Prisoners

Shorena Kakabadze, Kutaisi

Human Rights Committee of the parliament of Georgia dedicated its first session on November 1 to the issue of political prisoners. Besides committee members, the representatives of the human rights organizations, experts and family members of political prisoners attended the session; the discussion was conducted in difficult situation.

Committee members from the parliamentary minority declared mistrust to the list of political prisoners and working group which was set up at the session and is authorized to study cases of political prisoners within two weeks.

“Those, whom you call political prisoners, are spies and traitors,” the minority members made this remark at the session and left discussion. Before leaving the hall, they tried to cover the issue of political prisoners with other “more significant” ones like restriction of the rights of Muslim citizens of Georgia residing in Nigvziani village in Lanchkhuti district; etc.

The participants of the discussion focused on the list of political prisoners which was provided to the Human Rights Committee by several human rights organizations, including Human Rights Center.

Eka Beselia, chairwoman of the Committee: “Naturally, it is difficult for minority members to hear cases discussed at the committee session which will be initially studied by working group, and then submitted to the committee. So, they had natural reaction. It is fact – we will study these cases in accordance to the criteria estimated by the Council of Europe and will lead the process to the end. Our country shall finally get rid of this shame.”

Manana Kobakhidze, deputy chair of the parliament of Georgia: “We are holding a list of 185 people, provided by civil society; the list might not be complete. So, we must be careful when studying these cases. Today, every second prisoner claims that he/she is arbitrarily imprisoned. We might receive 25 000 more cases. So we must work out fair mechanism and start process. We must not be late; it is very important.”

Experts stated that political prisoners are counting days and hours in custodies before their cases are revised; they die of tuberculosis and other diseases; so these people need timely assistance.

“People arrested on political grounds have been in prisons for several years already. Former government is guilty in it and their representatives have fled from Georgia today because they have nothing to say. If there is at least one political prisoner in the country, it cannot be democratic. However, we have plenty of political prisoners whose cases will be initially discussed by working group and then by the Human Rights Committee of the Parliament,” Nana Kakabadze from the Former Political Prisoners for Human Rights told humanrights.ge.

Nana Kakbadze will work on the cases of political prisoners within working group. Representatives of Human Rights Center, Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association, Article 42 of the Constitution and other organizations are in the working group too.

The working group will study the cases during the next two weeks and submit cases to the parliamentary committee afterwards. 

At the committee session the Human Rights Center requested to stop release of prisoners under pardoning or plea-agreements. These people shall be released honorably and immediately, without any conditions. Also, set of cases shall be repeatedly discussed at the trial and breached rights shall be restituted.