What Do Inmates of Kutaisi Prison Need?

Shorena Kakabadze, Kutaisi

“Exploration of the conditions in the penitentiary system of Georgia exposed facts of torture, inhuman and degrading treatment of prisoners. We were particularly concerned about the attitude of the state towards the prison population. The lives of many inmates were saved and their medical treatment was provided only after the public defender’s office personally interfered in the problem,”- which is provided as a short extract from the report of Sozar Subarui, Georgian Public Defender he had prepared for the second half of 2007. Today, in July of 2008 the situation has not changed to the better inmates and they are still complaining about unbearable conditions they face in Georgian prisons.

Overcrowded cells, restricted medical treatment, bad food products and lack of an adequate water supply is part of the problems when cell temperatures reach 35-40 – this is just part of the description of the living conditions in Kutaisi Penitentiary Establishment # 2.

Information about poor conditions for those in state custody was announced soon after the penitentiary was opened. Although the government renovated the prison according to European standards, the water system immediately failed and the building was even flooded. In bad weather the rain was leaking into the cells and the inmates had to struggle against the water leaks all day long. In addition, the prison personnel treat inmates ruthlessly and finally the situation makes relatives of the condemned people to come out and protest all what is wrong with the prison system.

“Does not justice exist in Georgia? If a person is a prisoner, should he or she be tortured and even murdered? We have applied to everybody, every human rights organization but there has been no result. Conditions in the Kutaisi custody are unbearable, and nothing has changed; it is just as before. Many inmates are so desperate because of the conditions that they face that they can only dream of death. My husband told me that one night some people attacked and beat them in the cells. The abusers said they were from the penitentiary department in Tbilisi and were implementing the order of Bacho Akhalaia, the head of the department, who has an unsavory reputation among human rights organizations as being a sadist.  Those people were drunk and they broke up everything before leaving the prison. We learned about the incident only after long time later because my husband did not want to say anything about it,” said the wife of one of the prisoners.

“They have threatened both prisoners and their relative. It is kind of regime that our country has established. Whenever they wish to beat prisoners they come and harass them first. The intimidation does not stop here, as they also want to come and threaten family members of the prisoners as well.  My client, a prisoner, sewed up his mouth in protest; he had been accused of having attacked a prison staff member but that was a completely groundless accusation. As a result, however, he was ruthlessly beaten by the guards and he was locked in the solidarity confinement for 15 days. During this lockdown he was not even allowed to get in touch with his relatives or to speak with an attorney. His attorney was also not allowed to be in contact with him,” said lawyer Tsitsino Babunashvili.

The lawyer added that the discussion of the case of Archil Robakidze, an inmate was conduced under the cloud of many violations. Despite a lack of any evidence that was substantiated, judgment was passed based on unproved claims. The court did not interrogate classmates of Robakidze who could have acted as witnesses.”

“If you had witnessed what kind of conditions that this prisoner was kept in the custody, you yourself would have totally mad. It was a room like a storeroom where person could not even breathe. The administration did not pay attention to my request to place my client in normal conditions until I threatened them with applying to human rights organizations. Only afterwards, Robakidze was moved to ordinary prison cell. Prisoners are ruthlessly tortured in the custody and then the abused inmates are blamed for the crime. The situation is such but nonetheless prisoners avoid speaking out about it because they are under constant threat of reprisals. Archil Robakidze is one who dared to say something about it and you have seen what happened to him. It is unreasonable for the most part to fight against the prison system in Georgia. We might have to apply to European Court in Strasbourg to seek justice,” said Babunashvili.

Other lawyers and representatives of the NGOs also complain about the unbearable conditions in Kutaisi Penitentiary Establishment # 2. Last week they provided the Public Defender with exact facts of harassment. “Of course we discussed the problem with Sozar Subari. The cells are overcrowded. 8-10 inmates are placed in the cells for 6 people and they have to sleep in turns. A newly delivered prisoner spends one month in quarantine, and in fact only one week is needed for all scheduled examinations and other necessary procedures to be carried out.  The Office of Public Defender has drawn its attention to these problems in various reports but the reaction to them is minimal at best. The situation faced by prisoners is also horrible in the medical conditions that they face. There are no medicines and relatives send them to prisoners, if they are even able to learn about such a need,” said lawyer Ana Chapidze.

Reportedly, several tens of prisoners are placed in Penitentiary Establishment # 2 who needed medical treatment in a hospital but it has been impossible so far for them to be provided with such care.

“The medical records of patients and analysis of death reasons exposed that in most cases prisoners die because of incorrect and insufficient medical treatment, the overall indifference of prison personnel and doctors. The state does not control the medical system in the penitentiary department,” states the report of the public defender. Evidently, our government forgets that every person has right on life and health regardless s/he is prisoner and condemned for even the gravest of crimes.