Appeal Statement of Nongovernmental Organizations to Parliament of Georgia to Nominate Mr. Ucha Nanuashvili on the position of Public Defender

We, the undersigned organizations, propose initiative to consider Mr. Ucha Nanuashvili as a candidate for the position of Public Defender alongside other candidates. We believe that the Public Defender’s position is one of the most significant positions in the country, unifying different groups of societies, and we made the decision considering all aspects of Public Defender’s activities regulated by the national law as well as considering present challenges in the field of protection of human rights and personal dignities in our society. 

Ucha Nanuashvili is man of principles, a hardliner, politically unbiased and a long-experienced human rights defender who has been active in the human rights field for more than 15 years. Currently, he is the founder and executive director of the Georgian nongovernmental organization Human Rights Center. Under his leadership the organization worked and still continues working in the field of human rights, such as: right to fair trial and justice, protection of children and women’s rights, rights of minorities and other vulnerable parts of our society, of prisoners, mental disabled and other disabled people. The first bilingual online newspaper with regard to human rights issues http://www.humanrights.ge/ was founded by the Center. Ucha Nanuashvili has made significant merit to monitoring and reporting the human rights situation in Georgia and lobbied s these problems on the international level. Reports of Human Rights Center were handed to famous international organizations like UN Human Rights Committee, OSCE, CoE, EU and ICC. The findings of the Center’s monitoring provided reliable information for influential international organizations and they were reflected in the reports of the international organization like US State Department, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, etc. It is noteworthy that it is largely due to Ucha Nanuashvili’s support that the political prisoners’ problem in Georgia became a topic for international discussion. In the partnership with the HRC, the International Federation prepared the first report about the politically motivated cases in Georgia for Human Rights [FIDH]. Ucha Nanuashvili’s merit in the resolution of present conflicts in Georgia is particularly significant.

Since 2010 Ucha Nanuashvili has been the board chairman of Human Rights House Tbilisi. Since 2011 he has been a board member of the Foundation Global Initiative in Psychiatry, a member of the steering committee of the Civic Society Forum of EU EaP, coordinator of the first working group (human rights, democracy, good governance, stability). He is vice-president of Association of Political Sciences. Mr. Nanuashvili is also a board member of the Georgian section of the War Resisters International Movement, and a coordinator of the South Caucasus Network of Human Rights Defenders.

Ucha Nanuashvili was also a human rights officer of the Georgian National Committee of the Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly, a coordinator of the Tbilisi initiative group of the Amnesty International, and a human rights lecturer at the MIA Police Academy. He was member of human rights defenders working group under CoE Commissioner for Human Rights (Thomas Hammarberg). He is author of more than 35 reports and articles.

Mr. Ucha Nanuashvili was born on April 23, 1974. He graduated from the Tbilisi Institute of Political Science and Tbilisi Iv. Javakhishvili State University, his degree in International Law and International Relations. In 2000 Mr. Nanuashvili took a course at the International Institute of Human Rights (Strasbourg, France). In 2002, he took an additional course on human rights law and practice program at the Law School of Birmingham University (Great Britain). The same year he took an internship at the British Institute of International and Comparative Law. He also studied at the post-graduate institute of Political Sciences at Georgian Academy of Science. He has a wife and two children.

Considering Ucha Nanuashvili’s qualification and work experience, we believe that he will equally and impartially work in every field of human rights. Namely, on civic and political rights, economic and cultural rights, rights of women, children, disabled people, minorities and other vulnerable parts of the society; he will also be focused on the protection of freedom of expression and media. We suggest you the initiative to support Mr. Ucha Nanuashvili on the position of Public Defender of Georgia.

The signatories are:

1. Article 42 of the Constitution
2. Public Movement – Multinational Georgia
3. Confederation of Georgian Trade Unions;
4. Georgian Center for Psychosocial and Medical Rehabilitation of Torture Victims (GCRT);
5. Human Rights Center;
6. Public Attorney;
7. Human Rights House Tbilisi
8. Global Initiative on Psychiatry;
9. Network of Information Centers;
10. Independent Expert's Club;
11. Union Sapari;
12. Media Institute;
13. Center for Human Rights and Conflict Studies – Caucasia;
14. Coalition for Civic Development;
15. Research Center of Elections and Political Technologies;
16. Healthy World;
17.  European Integration Forum;
18. International Center on Conflict and Negotiation (ICCN);
19. Former Political Prisoners for Human Rights;
20. Youth for Justice;
21. Georgian Association of Teachers and Parents;
22. Mothers’ Committee;
23. Center for Foreign Citizens' and Migrants' Rights and Security;
24. Patients for Equal Rights.