Pressure on Judges by Prosecutors in Gori
„Judges in Gori are frightened by the prosecutors“- sates the leader of local oppositional party „New Righters“. According to Mamuka Paniashvili’s statement, the judges in Gori are influenced by the Shida-Kartli and Gori prosecutors. Valeri Tsertsvadze, secretary of the Council of Justice, makes „mischievous“ judges attend disciplinary committee meetings if they resist the pressure. Valeri Tsertsvadze’s brother Giorgi Tsertsvadze is the main prosecutor in Gori. „It is impossible to speak of a legislative environment when considering the system that is established by the Prosecutors’ Office and the court in Gori“- says Mamuka Paniashvili.
The New Righters requested data form Gori’s Court chancellery about the number of cases persecuted and the number of convictions. In 2005, from September to November, 31 persons were accused by the prosecutors and all of them were sentenced to pre-trial imprisonment by the court instead of using other coercive actions towards them. In 2003, over the same months, only 3 persons were imprisoned. The New Righters consider that the judges are afraid to be dismissed and therefore go along with the prosecution’s demands.
Giorgi Tsertsvadze labels these statements as absurd and denies his participation in putting pressure on judges.
Saba Tsitsikashvili from Gori