The Government Commits Crime

The Statement of Human Rights Centre

On November 2 Georgian people came out in the streets under the leadership of the United Opposition. Tbilisi demonstrations have already been going for several days in front of the Parliament. The main demand of demonstrators are to hold parliamentary elections in spring instead of previously estimated autumn. Some opposition leaders went on hunger strike.

Although the number of demonstrators reached approximately hundreds of  thousand people, the government does not intend to start a dialogue. The situation is becoming complicated day by day which might result serious holocaust. The Human Rights Centre considers that the means which the government utilizes nowadays is unacceptable and ineffective. Moreover, it makes situation more tense.

Human Rights Centre considers that the government committed following crimes during recent days:

On November 1, people arriving from all over the Georgia encountered serious obstacles: The government seized cars, grabbed keys to the cars, technical passports and blocked motor-ways for people and cut tires of the cars. Some drivers were assaulted. For instance: the roads and Chakvi Tunnel were blocked for mini-buses coming from Batumi. The tires of  Kutaisi and Zugdidi mini-buses had been damaged beforehand. They took technical passports from drivers. They didn’t allow buses from Tbilisi to go to Kakheti in order to prevent them from bringing people in front of the parliament.

Former Defense Minister Irakli Okruashvili, who publicly blamed the government for corruption was forced to leave country and go abroad though he intended to attend the demonstration on November 2.

Since November 2 the demonstrators are perused. The special brigades are formed to haunt the participants of demonstration. Law enforcers attacked and abused people who were detected far from the demonstration area.

At night of November 5 certain group of people armed with clubs attacked mini-buses standing in front of the parliament in which demonstrators from Batumi were sleeping.

The attackers physically abused people being in the bus and damaged the bus as well.

On November 2 Rati Maisuradze, the young leader of Labor Party, and Koba Chitanava, the head of Sokhumi University Self-government, were attacked. They were badly injured. Data Akhalaia the former head of Constitutional Security Department, is supposed to have participated in this attack. Rati Maisuraze was pushed in the boot of Akhalaia’s car  and was kidnapped.

On November 5  Vice-Colonel Giorgi  Gotsiridze fetched poisoned wine to the demonstrators in front of the parliament which caused intoxication of over 30 people. The injured people were urgently brought to the hospital.

On November 5 the Regional  and Criminal Police of Ozurgeti sacked the demonstration aimed to support the United Opposition.

On November 7 at midnight the police dispersed the people in front of the parliament as well as hunger-strikers arrested some of them including Goga Khaindrava, one of the leaders of United Opposition. The police seized cameras and recording material from journalists.

On November 7 in the morning police arrested several demonstrators. By 1:00 PM unit of Special Forces attacked peaceful demonstrators and dispersed them. They used water-flows, gas and clubs; as a result of the dispersal ordinary people, as well as several opposition leaders were badly injured.

Hunan Rights Centre calls upon the government to release aressted people and carry on dialogue with the population. Authority should not  escalate the situation even though it has to make some compromises. Human Rights Centre calls upon the International Orgainisations to assist Georgia to resolve problems through peacful way.