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Is Blanket Amnesty for Prisoners, “Political Action” – OR NOT?

November 19, 2008

Nona Suvarian, Tbilisi

The Amnesty Law, initiated by the Georgian President, will supposedly cover 12 thousand prisoners. According to official structures, an addition segment the prison population will have the length of their terms substantially reduced. As for now, however, over 2 thousand prisoners will be released from prisons by the 23rd of November. This figure is impressive, especially in relative terms for the size of Georgia as much so as the total number of inmates warehoused in Georgian penitentiary establishments is at an unprecedented level of 20,500. Many of these convicts are serving terms for what would otherwise be considered as petty crimes. The parliament voted on draft-law at the first session when it came up for a vote. The amnesty was passed, which included a total of 55 articles. However, it is possible that some additional articles might also be added in the not-so-distant future.

Non-governmental organizations appreciate this one-off act of goodwill. However, in spite of the positive first impression, there are some questions and commentary over the terms as described in the draft of the enabling legislation.

Elizbar Khachapuridze, lawyer for the Human Rights Center, states that the humanity of the draft-law can be valued according to Article 273 that envisages lesser penalties for those addicted to drugs, treating such offenders as a sickness and not a crime. The length of their terms has been cut in half under the language of the enabling amnesty legislation. 
 
“We think that those who are serving on drug charges should be released. Furthermore, there are articles, so-called dead articles, which are covered on paper but in actuality not one person has been charged in Georgia, or not more than just a handful. Take for instance the crime of cruelty and the ill treatment of animals or punishment for a captain who abandons his ship. It was very easy to release those prisoners who were charged under such articles. Thus, we cannot assess the draft-law as being either humane or that progressive.”

The lawyer told that legislators should consider the draft amnesty legislation very carefully and make it more realistic, human and it must be flexible and courageous in light of policy in the criminal justice system.

Manana Kobakhidze, representative of the non-governmental organization “Article 42”, states that amnesty has not dealt with those articles, which were amended or initiated by the authorities. For example: trading under the influence deals with less grave crimes. Based on the anti-corruption policy bribery was not on the list of amnestied articles. It did not deal with the crime against judiciary authority or a crime committed in penitentiary establishments. Those people, who had used prohibited items in prison, are also sent to prison for 2-3 years.

“The amnesty dealt with the articles envisaging less grave crimes where plea bargain was signed. Despite the pardoning, these people are free. Economic crimes are not pardoned.”

Manana Kobakhidze doubts the official information, which states 12 thousand people will be pardoned. “It is an exaggerated figure. I doubt 12 thousand people were imprisoned for cruel treatment of animas and illegal logging or cutting down bushes. In addition, other amnestied articles also cover those people who signed plea-bargains and they are now free.”

The lawyer thinks that the draft-law on amnesty is basically a political action. “The state has the authority to decide which article will be amnestied. We are just sitting and looking for conformity with a law. We cannot claim how right this initiative was. They do whatever they want. We cannot estimate the truth here.”

Zakaria Kutsnashvili, the head of the non-governmental organization “Law for People” states that the Amnesty Law demonstrates that strict criminal policy failed in Georgia.

“Using the principle of zero tolerance over the last 4-5 years made us make stricter the norms of Criminal and Criminal Procedural Codes. Imposing a bail and imprisonment of the condemned are the only working executive activities. The liability measures are increased too.

“I am not against amnesty because it is a human action but in the case of strict criminal policy that still continues, it will not lead us to better results. The principle of adding charges still works. They could make grave charges absorb less grave charges. Additional punishments are still in force and prisoners have to pay bails.”

Zakaria Kutsnashvili states that amnesty will not resolve those problems, which exist in Georgian judiciary system.

“More than 200-300 people are arrested each month. Thus, maybe the government will release 2,000 prisoners but the same number will be sent to prison within 5-6 months. Although the draft-law will relieve the situation it will not change the overall situation. The articles still remain strict. For example, before a judge had right to impose one main and one additional punishment but now the judge is empowered to impose one main and several additional punishments on the accused.”

Before a judge had right to impose a conditional sentence on the accused; now the judge relies on the recommendation of the prosecutor. It is almost totally dependent on the agreement of the prosecutor to accept a plea-bargain or not. The judge has no discretion to impose a plea-bargain agreement unilaterally. The bails amount to 50-100 thousand GEL, which is prohibitory high in a country where poverty is the biggest problem.

Zakaria Kutsnashvili thinks that the crime rate will still increases in Georgia because of social injustice, legal policy and means that people are intimidated and the fact that few people understand that violence never brings about positive results.

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