Female Prisoners Ceased Hunger-Strike

Lawyer Gela Nikolaishvili reported that inmates of women’s prison stopped hunger-strike.

“The five women, who went on hunger-strike several days ago, sent petition to the Chairman of the Parliament Davit Bakradze to introduce amendments to the law and allow children of convicted mothers to stay in prison with their mothers till 5 or 7 years. There is a suitable space in the women’s prison: there is a small space for kindergarten and children grow up in normal environment. They also requested Bakradze to discuss possibility of early release or pardoning of mothers in order to allow children to grow up in general society. I do not know exactly who, but somebody from the Parliament promised the strikers to discuss their petition and they stopped protest,” Nikolaishvili told the Pirveli.

On January 30, prisoners Izolda Kvelidze, Tamila Bartaia, Elene Tushishvili, Seda Sogomonyan and Ia Khvichia started hunger-strike; they have little (under 3) children. The prison administration intended to move their children to an orphanage based on the acting law.
In accordance to the law, convicted women can have their children under 3 in the custody and afterwards the prison administration makes decision on placement of the children in corresponding institution.

Nana Kakabadze, chair of the NGO “Former Political Prisoners for Human Rights” said in abovementioned cases the children do not have families [but their mothers] and they might be placed in orphanage; the convicted mothers protest this fact.

News Agency “Pirveli”