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A New Accusation against Sulkhan Molashvili

March 19, 2007

molashvili2.gifUnder the Georgian Criminal Code, Article 378, Section I, former chairman of the Chamber of Control, Sulkhan Molashvili, was accused for a new crime. According to Bacho Akhalaia, the chairman of the Penitentiary Department, the reason for new accusation was Sulkhan Molashvili’s having assaulted Jurkha Filauri, a doctor for jail hospital. However, Molashvili claims he has not assaulted the doctor. The reason for provocation is that despite Akhalia’s demands and threats, prisoner has not withdrawn appeals form the Strasburg Court. (photo: Sulkhan Molashvili)

Molashvili’s lawyer, Shalva Shavgulidze, and family members said that the Strasburg Court has accepted their appeals and started their discussion. Consequently, suppression on Molashvili has been increased. According to the lawyer, he was demanded not to send the appeals to the court; he was threatened too. Nevertheless, the European Court satisfied the lawyer’s mediation and the appeal will soon be discussed.

The history of Molashvili’s detention is known not only to Georgian population but to international organizations as well. The topic has been discussed in the reports of many international organizations. He was sentenced to eight-year-imprisonment. The Human Rights Center’s journalist met Shavgulidze to discuss the new accusations against his client in details.

Shalva Shavgulidze:  “Let’s begin with the fact that Molashvili sent appeals to the European Court regarding the violations of his rights, which is envisaged under the European convention. Our three appeals will soon be discussed. Time of discussing the appeals at the European court is approaching and the detainee is demanded to withdraw his appeals. Besides that, his health condition has become an important problem recently.

Joint conclusion of the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Health on Molashvili’s health conditions was sent to the European Court. The conclusion states that his health condition has not worsened and it is not necessary to place him in the jail hospital. However, the government is too attentive to Molashvili and he is treated at the hospital. We received a copy of this notification from the European Court. Afterwards, we carried out independent medical examination and sent its conclusion to the European Court. The last examination, besides previous illnesses the detainee suffered, showed that he has a serious pathology on liver that is caused by virus of C Hepatitis. Thus, the examination discovered a new disease. Initially, the Ministry of Justice tried to deny the discovery of that illness. The European Court demanded the government to introduce their opinion regarding the situation. Finally, the disease was confirmed by the state expertise and the European Court put the authority in charge of carrying out treatment of the disease because Molashvili got ill during his detention.

The government obeyed the directive. Molashvili was initially treated at the Infection Hospital and then at the jail hospital.”

The lawyer Shavgulidze recalled that during one of Molashvili’s meting with his lawyers, the prisoner said that representatives of the penitentiary department intensively visited him and demanded to withdraw appeals from the European Court.

“If he had withdrawn the appeals, he could have been granted with pardon or his accusations could have been decreased. Otherwise, he could not avoid serious problems,” said the lawyer.

Several days after conversation, on January 29, a famous fact regarding the doctor occurred. Sulkhan Molashvili said in his testimony that doctor Filauri approached him while he was in the corridor. The doctor started speaking with him about a prisoner Gagi Khvedelidze. The later was Molashvili’s close person and the former chief of his administration. Khvedelidze was treated in the same hospital as Molashvili.

According to Shavgulidze, Khvedelidze was detained because of not having accused Molashvili for some other crimes. “Sulkhani was really concerned about that person. The doctor told him that Khvedelidze’s health conditions had aggravated and he needed to be operated on; however, the officials demanded to return him back to the prison and the doctor could not resist the order. Filauri asked Molashvili to help Khvedelidze somehow. Sulkhani offered the doctor to write a report to the administration regarding Khvedeliani’s health conditions. The two men were speaking in the corridor and Filauri offered the prisoner to go on speaking in his quarter.”

Molashvili said in his testimony that “Another sick prisoner and a nurse were in the doctor’s quarter when we entered. Filarui sat down at his table and started to speak in quite a different tone with me. He said he did not know what to do and could not help Khvedelidze at all. He said why I had entered his room, he could not help me.”

Shavgulidze said that Sulkhani understood it was a provocation and said Filauri it was dishonesty of him. He banged the door and went out. An hour later, Akhalaia gave a press-conference and said that Molashvili committed a crime and beat a doctor. We, Sulkhani and I learned about the incident on TV. Consequently, Molashvili was blamed under the Georgian Criminal Code, Article 378, section I. Today, he was accused for another crime too.”

The events developed in a strange way after that incident. Prisoner Gagi Khvedelidze was taken to the Republic Hospital to be operated on. A day later he managed to escape form the 11th floor of the hospital. However, on the second day he was detained in the house of his cousin. Several minutes after detention, Akhalia gave a new press-conference where he stated that Molashvili helped the fugitive. The investigation on the last fact is still going on. Molashvili has not been accused for the last crime yet. However, the lawyer does not exclude the fact that his client would be blamed for the last incident as well.

“Sulkhani and we think that the recent events are the execution of the threats that had followed our appeals being sent to the Strasburg Court. As for the court, we do not know the exact date when Molashvili’s case will be discussed. However, I am sure it will happen very soon,” said Shavgulidze.

One more problem is that Molashvili cannot meet his family members once a month; however the right is envisaged under the law. Molashvili’s wife said that although a prisoner can be visited once a month, the number of visitors is restricted in their case. “Two adults can be allowed at the meeting. Sulkhani’s father and brother have to take turns to visit the prisoner. My father-in-law petitioned to the Ministry of Justice, Public Defender and the chairwoman of the Parliament’s Human Rights Committee. We want them to indicate us to the law that states that only two people can visit a prisoner. It is a real torture. Father can see his son only once in two months while the law allows him to visit him every month.”

The Human Rights Center applied to the deputy Public Defender, Giga Giorgadze regarding the situation. He said “There is no similar regulation envisaged by the law. Family members can visit the prisoner once a month. I must study the situation well and then I will be able to comment on it. I have never heard about similar facts.” 

Eka Gulua

 

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