Head of Police Threatens Journalists

Soso Martashvili

Soso Martashvili, the head of Gurjaani Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia (MIA), terrorizes Kakheti regional journalists for covering illegal arrest of sportsmen. The police authority warned the journalists unless they stop working on the sportsmen’s case, drugs might be planted not only on them (journalists) but also on their family members.

The journalists claim that Soso Martashvili yelled at the journalists from TV Company Rustavi 2, First Channel, Gurjaani and the Human Rights Center’s internet newspaper www. humanrights.ge and Kakheti regional newspaper Imedi yesterday. He also insulted journalists and threatened that they would be arrested just like the sportsmen.

“On January 7, 2009 the judge of the Gurjaani District Court upheld the Gurjaani District Prosecutor’s motion by sentencing Bidzina Sepiashvili and Spartak Saltkhutsishvili, two young sportsmen charged for robbing police officers to two months of detention of remand. After the trial the attendees of court hearing held a protest in front of the court house. The associates of the detainees explained to us that the sportsmen simply had an argument with police officer that was not on his duty and it had nothing to do with the robbery. The protesters tried to prove the innocence of detainees by the statements of witnesses. The police was watching over the protest. When the protest was over Soso Martashvili, head of the police division came to us in a police car and started insulting us (we assume that he was drunk). He insulted us and threatened with arrest: “Forget this case or the police might find drugs in your pockets.” If we do not stop working on the sportsmen’s case there is a chance that drugs will be planted on our family members too,” said insulted journalists.

It is noteworthy that Soso Martashvili is a close friend to Giorgi Ghviniashvili, Kakheti regional Governor. The Kakheti Regional administration has confidence in him (Soso Martashvili). As for Martashvili, he claims nobody can do any harm to him regarding this case.

Last year, several independent journalists found a powder that looked like drugs in their handbags many times last year.