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Strasbourg Court Recommends Ministry of Justice To Repeatedly Discuss Jemal Tsiklauri’s Case

November 26, 2013
 
Lado Bichashvili, Shida Kartli

After the government changed in Georgia, Strasbourg Court recommended the Ministry of Justice to re-investigate the case Jemal Tsiklauri vs Georgia. The applicant blames the senior officials of the previous government – ex-defense minister Irakli Okruashvili and Shida Kartli region former governor Mikheil Kareli in seizing his property. The Court recommended the Ministry of Justice to start repeated discussion of the case at the national courts; otherwise the Strasbourg Court will start discussion of the application. The response of the Ministry of Justice to the Strasbourg Court is not known to the applicant Jemal Tsiklauri yet; he has been complaining about the breached property rights and methods used by the former senior officials to force him sign the document on assigning the agriculture market to the state. 

Jemal Tsiklauri: “After the Rose Revolution, Mikheil Kareli occupied the position of the Shida Kartli regional governor and started to directly intimidate me. The story started so: a citizen came to the market, asked a trader to weigh meat and blamed him in cheating. Kareli declared in front of cameras that Jemal Tsiklauri was criminal and was to be arrested. Afterwards, I met Mikheil Kareli in his working room who said I had to assign my property to the state; of course I refused and then they started financial inspection in the market. They sent Tax Service and wrote absurd protocol as if I had hidden revenue of 278 000 lari from the state and they arrested me. During imprisonment Misha Kareli was visiting me every day and compelled me to write the document on assigning the market to the state. Despite huge oppression, I did not sign. Finally, they threatened me via my wife and imposed a huge fine, which I could not afford. They could easily bankrupt me so I signed the document; I had no more choice.”

In 2004, the market was assigned to the state but now it has private owners – it was purchased by Israeli and Arab businessman for 710 000 USD. Market director Gogi Bochorishvili said the current owners are honest purchasers of the market and the company has long-term development perspective.

Gogi Bochorishvili, market director: “The market was purchased in 2007 at the auction held by the Ministry of Property Management. The first and second auctions failed and at the third auction Israeli citizen Basan Marzuki and Arab citizen Alon Eshed purchased the market. They hold all documents to prove that they were honest purchasers. We have nothing to do with the argument between the state and Tsiklauri; they should resolve it separately.”

Head of Gori office of the Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association Ketevan Bebiashvili said the state is in difficult conditions when the disputable property is sold. If the property is returned to Tsiklauri, the state will become accountable before the current owners of the market. “If the violation of the property rights is confirmed after relevant investigation, the request of the applicant shall be satisfied. Georgian law does not contain clear provisions about the problem but Mr. Jemali has right to request his property back; in addition to that he can claim reimbursement for the seized property. If the court concludes that current owners are honest purchasers, the state will be in difficult conditions and will have to compensate them if the property is returned to the initial owner,” Ketevan Bebiashvili said.

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