Eight-year-old Child Is Seized of the House Inherited from Grandfather

“On our way from the court, my daughter told me: “Mother, we are in such a terrible situation that we should drown ourselves in the Rioni River. There is no way out for us.”My daughter should not do that but I really do not have any more way out. I cannot look at my child because I feel myself guilty. My child has been trying to regain the house inherited from her grandfather for three years already. The reason for the problem is my unreasonable decision and several people who betrayed me,” said mother of eight-year-old Tsitsino Khvedelidze, Mzia Khachiperadze who applied to the Human Rights Centers’s Kutaisi Office with the support of Maguli Giorgadze, former head of the Department for the Rights of Child and Cooperation with Juveniles within the Kutaisi Self-Government.

The problem originated in January 2004 after the death of Givi Khvedelidze, grandfather of Tsitsino. Before death, grandfather passed his property over his five-year-old granddaughter. The daughter-in-law decided to borrow some money to pay the expenses for funeral. She decided to secure the loan with the house her daughter had inherited from grandfather. She soon found a person who wanted the house in exchange of the loan. Certain Gulnazi Zhorzholadze, who was involved in similar affairs, introduced Mzia Khachiperadze with Grigol Tsakadze who could lend her the money. Zhorzholadze and Tsakadze were so eager to get hold of the house of Khvedelidzes at a low price that they did not wait for six months to pass after the death of the owner that is envisaged under the law, and with the support of Notary Maguli Bregadze they draw up an inheritance document two months later. Three days after the document was signed the house was charged under the hypothec.

Maguli Giorgadze learned about the incidents from the article published in the local newspaper. The article stated that the house was being sold at the auction. Giorgadze said that “Although parents agreed to sell the house, on the basis of the Convention for the Rights of the Child, the state is responsible to protect the child from the harassment of parents or some other people. In this particular case, parents had breached the child’s rights to the house. However, the Notary understood that she had drawn up illegal document and sent the parent to us. She advised the parent to petition to us to charge the house, registered on their daughter, under the hypothec. We refused but it did not change anything because the Notary needed our agreement to make her position more convincing.”

Since that time, the court started the discussion of the case. Department for the Rights of the Child and Cooperation with Juveniles within the Kutaisi Self-Government defended the rights of five-year-old Tsitsino from her mother and violator dealers. 

Court discussion of the case revealed some other violations made during the signing of the contract. More precisely, initially the loan contract between Mzia Khachiperadze and Grigol Tsakadze was signed for six months. However, later the deadline was reduced until two months.

Mzia Khachiperadze said in her conversation with the Human Rights Center: “I wanted to pay monthly percent of the loan two months later but the broker did not take the money. When I borrowed the money from them, they gave only 1200 USD our of 2000 USD because I had to pay 800 USD to the Notary, the dealer and broker. They said they needed that money to prepare documents. They wrote 3 000 USD in the document on hypothec. My husband and I inquired about it and they answered it was necessary to write that amount of money but they promised me to tear of the document as soon as I paid the loan. However, everything happened otherwise. They made fraudulent documents and the debt soon amounted to 7 000 USD together with the percent. Two months later the opponent party appealed to the court and the court satisfied their demand. The house of my child must have sold on the auction.”

The court discussion lasted for two years at the Kutaisi Civil Court and it finished in Tsitsino Khvedelidze’s favor. The Department for the Rights of the Child and Cooperation with Juveniles did its duty and saved the house from selling out. However, the opponent party appealed to the Appeal Court and the above-mentioned Department is not abolished and cannot assist the child. Maguli Giorgadze cannot protect her beneficiary.

The Khvedelidzes, having been remained without any protector, applied to the Kutaisi Mayer twice this year-in January and April. The announcement dated by January 23 states the following:  

“Unless you assist me I will have no more way out but kill my children and myself because we do not have any shelter except the house which belongs to my daughter and certain people appropriated it having deceived us. I hope you will mercy my two children...”

Mzia Khachiperadze said that there was no reply to her petition. Then she visited Kutaisi Mayer and discussed her problem to him in private. “Since Mrs. Maguli knew our problem very well and had won several trials in my daughter’s favor, I urged the Mayer to put her in charge of our protection again. However, the Mayer said that other people also could protect us properly. What did they do in fact? The court hearing did not start before 7:00 PM though it should have started at 4:00 PM. The child came to the court from school and she was hungry. Finally the trial was postponed because of absence of the opposite party. Lasha Gvenetadze, who was to protect us, said at the trail that he did not know case materials. The judge offered us to appoint state attorney for us because we could not pay for hired one. I know how state attorney would have protected me. They want to get hold of my daughter’s property. As for the City Hall, officials assist my rivals instead of my child by not taking any measures.”

Human Rights Center got interested what was City Hall’s reaction on Mzia Khachiperadze’s petition. As they found out, Makvala Kobuladze, the head of the City Hall Service Department for Culture, Sport, Monument Protection, Education and Youth Issues and Legal Department were put in charge to attend to the petition. Kobuladze could not comment on her activities regarding the petition because she could not remember it. As for Lasha Gvenetadze, the head of the Legal Department, he defined that he had urged the judge to postpone the trial because he did not know the case materials. He needed some time to survey the materials. He is going to protect the rights of Tsitsino Khvedelidze on the next trial.

Meanwhile the life of juvenile became unbearable in her house. Her family is suppressed and forced to leave the house. As it became clear, Grigol Tsakadze, the loan-holder, appealed to the Kutaisi Police Department. On June 4 the police visited the Khvedelidzes and demanded them to leave the house for the new owner. In addition to that law enforcers did not know that the old owner of the house was eight-year-old child and could not reply to them.

The policemen left the house after Maguli Giorgadze showed them the court verdict dated by February 7 2007. On the basis of this document, the criminal proceeding on Tsitsino Khvedelidze’s eviction from her house was dropped against her parents, Notary and Tsakadze. The case was canceled on the basis of Maguli Giorgadze’s suit.

Kutaisi Appeal Court did not discuss the suit of Ketevan Meskhi who is a representative of Jambul Khvedelidze, the father of Tsitsino Khvedelidze. The suit was brought to prove that the contract was illegally signed and the Prosecutor’s Office was discussing it. Consequently, the Judicial Collegiums, chairman Simon Chkhaidze, decided: “To abolish the Kutaisi Civil Court Verdict dated by November 6 2006 on the case # 2/915 in that particular section under which the suit was satisfied and the Notary Act # 1-1676 was canceled. According to the Notary Act was drawn to charge the house under the hypothec. In this section a new decision was made.”

It must be pointed out that recent circumstances dramatically changed the situation. Ketevan Meskhi applied to various instances and the investigation launched at the Imereti Regional Prosecutor’s Office revealed various violations committed by the officials while charging the house under hypothec. The suitor complained about those violations in their initial appeals to the Civil Court. Consequently several people were arrested and investigation is going on now.

Maguli Giorgadze, former head of the Department for the Rights of the Child and Cooperation with Juveniles, said that she, together with Ketevan Meskhi, representative of Jambul Khvedelidze, will soon appeal to the Supreme Court and they would continue to protect the rights of Tsitsino Khvedelidze.

Lela Khidasheli, Kutaisi