SJC Seeks Criminal Accountability of MIA Officials Over Late-2024 Protest Dispersals
Social Justice Center, a Georgian human rights group, has formally requested Tbilisi’s Prosecutor’s Office to launch criminal proceedings against former and current senior officials of the Interior Ministry over violence committed against protesters during Tbilisi’s late-2024 Rustaveli Avenue protests.
The ongoing criminal case, which covers “abuse of power” and “interference with journalistic activities,” has been handled by the Tbilisi Prosecutor’s office, following the abolishment of the Special Investigation Service in July.
The SJC, which represents about 60 victims in the ongoing case, said on August 11 that investigative materials show “a well-founded assumption” that high-ranking officials, including former Interior Minister Vakhtang Gomelauri and ex-Special Tasks Department head Zviad Kharazishvili, were aware of the police abuses and failed to at least take appropriate preventive measures.
The group cites witness statements and interrogation reports, according to which Kharazishvili had “full information about the violence” carried out during the protests, yet he “failed to take appropriate action to prevent the crime, which constitutes an official offense.”
The SJC accuses him of failing to carry out his duties as head of the Department by allowing masked, heavily equipped officers to operate without special identification markings. According to the group, this policy ensured that those who assaulted protesters could not be identified or punished.
“Within the framework of the investigation, it should also be assessed whether he engaged in deliberate actions connected to the intentional absence of identification markings on Special Task Department employees and the deliberate tolerance of violence, and provision of guarantee of impunity,” the group argued.
In late May, Vakhtang Gomelauri resigned as interior minister, triggering a major reshuffle within the ministry that ultimately saw the departure of three notorious officials. Among them was Kharazishvili and his two deputies, Mirza Kezevadze and Mileri Lagazauri. All three have been sanctioned by the United Kingdom and the United States under the Global Magnitsky Act.
Beyond Kharazishvili, the SJC says the case materials point to the criminal liability of Gomelauri, who “gave the orders to disperse assemblies and was responsible for the proper conduct of this process,” as well as his former deputies, Aleksandre Darakhvelidze, Ioseb Chelidze, Giorgi Butkhuzi, and Shalva Bedoidze, and Kharazishvili’s deputies, Kezevadze and Lagazauri.
According to the SJC, video footage shows these officials observing the violence. It also cites former the statement by Irakli Shaishmelashvili, a former Special Tasks Department official who resigned in protest amid dispersals in December, “which indicates that MIA senior officials had knowledge of the violence but did nothing to prevent the clearly criminal actions,” and in some cases were directly involved.
“In view of all the above, the Social Justice Center calls on the Tbilisi Prosecutor’s Office to consider the submitted motion and ensure the initiation of criminal prosecution against [Zviad] Kharazishvili and other senior officials of the MIA,” the group argued.
Earlier Motions
The SJC says that after reviewing the criminal case files in January 2025, it submitted a series of formal motions to prosecutors seeking additional charges and investigative steps.
First, the group called for the case to be reclassified to include “torture, degrading and inhuman treatment, and robbery”, rather than solely “the abuse of power.”
Second, the SJC urged a systemic review of how the November–December 2024 protest dispersals were planned, carried out, and overseen. This included obtaining and analyzing operational plans, identifying participating officers, and questioning senior Interior Ministry officials, as well as “seizure of their mobile phones and computer equipment and the examination of electronic communications.”
The group also requested technical examinations of the Ministry’s radio communications system after records from November 28 to December 8, 2024, were found missing due to alleged “defects.” It noted similar gaps occurred in a separate spring 2024 protest investigation, raising suspicions of evidence destruction or concealment. The SJC demanded a computer-technological assessment of the Operational-Technical Department’s systems and questioning of responsible officials.
The SJC further cited that it has previously demanded prosecutors retrieve video footage from detainee transport vehicles, “since numerous witnesses questioned during the investigation indicated that after their detention, Special Tasks Department employees continued to subject them to physical violence inside the vehicles.”
Finally, the SJC asked investigators to question former Special Tasks officer Irakli Shaishmelashvili, who it says “possesses important information” about decision-making during dispersals, “illegality of using special means against protest participants,” and the direct role of senior officials in the violence.
The watchdog’s request comes as no police officer has been held accountable despite numerous documented abuses during dispersals. Dozens of protesters, however, remain in jail on protest-related criminal charges. Eleven persons detained in the context of protests that erupted in November 2024 have already been handed prison sentences, including on charges of assaulting police officers, and the number of guilty verdicts is expected to grow.
Also Read:
- 14/03/2025 – Watchdog Says GD Uses Administrative Offenses Code to Suppress Protest, Calls for Reform
- 03/02/2025 – SJC Warns of ‘Normalized’ Police Brutality, Calls for Investigation and Accountability
- 29/12/2025 – Interview With Former Senior Official Reveals Systemic Violations in Ministry of Interior