GYLA Reports on Protest-Related Trial Trends
The Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association (GYLA), a prominent local human rights watchdog, has issued a report summarizing criminal cases against individuals arrested, charged, and convicted in connection with demonstrations during 2024 and 2025.
The 66-page document draws on nearly 300 criminal hearings, covering 10 people charged during the spring 2024 rallies against the Foreign Agents Law and 59 others charged amid pro-EU protests between November 2024 and February 2025.
GYLA said the use of criminal law mechanisms against demonstrators has been “one of the forms of repression,” noting that the number of people charged and already convicted (69) is “considerably high.”
“The use of criminal detentions in relation to protest activities has, in effect, criminalized peaceful protest and restricted freedom of assembly,” the report said, adding that the charges, the statements by high-ranking officials, and the overall strict criminal policy “indicate political persecution of individuals with dissenting views by the ruling party ‘Georgian Dream,’ serving the purpose of suppressing public protest.”
Key Findings
“Observing criminal cases before first instance courts reveals that the use of criminal prosecution mechanisms against activists is not directed solely at identifying and preventing specific alleged criminal acts, but also serves as a means of exerting pressure on the rights to freedom of assembly and expression,” GYLA said, adding that this practice is not an isolated violation of rights but contains elements of political motivation and hidden intent.
Charges Brought
According to GYLA, activists have mostly been charged with offenses related to group violence, police assault, property damage, drugs, and blocking strategic facilities.
Use of Detention as a Measure of Restraint
The report said courts have largely opted for detention, which it described as the “strictest form” of pretrial restraint, adding that judges granted prosecutors’ motions for detention without considering defendants’ individual circumstances.
“The imposition of unsubstantiated and prolonged detention on activists did not serve the legitimate purposes of a measure of restraint,” GYLA said, adding that “requests for and imposition of detention instead functioned as a means of punishing activists and exerting pressure on them.”
Cases of Ill-treatment
The monitoring found that 13 of the 69 detainees reported ill-treatment that could amount to torture or inhuman treatment under Georgian and international law.
The detainees who are reported to have faced ill-treatment include Revaz Kiknadze, Nika Katsia, Anatoli Gigauri, Davit Khomeriki, Temur Zasokhashvili, Davit Lomidze, Archil Museliantsi, Anastasia Zinovkina, Artem Gribul, Tedo Abramovi, Aleksandre Elisashvili, and Mzia Amaghlobeli. Only one of them, Saba Skhvitaridze, was granted victim status.
“In addition, several defendants pointed to problems within penitentiary establishments, in particular: heat and lack of ventilation; the presence of cockroaches in cells; water and canalization problems; and insufficient medical care,” GYLA said.
The watchdog further noted that investigations into complaints of ill-treatment were ineffective and that no officer had been held accountable.
The Principle of Publicity
GYLA highlighted a decline in trial transparency, noting that recent amendments to the Law on Common Courts “practically eliminated the possibility for media to cover court hearings.” The group added that the special approval mechanism for recordings has not worked in practice.
“Despite numerous requests by media outlets to get permission to cover criminal proceedings against activists, the High Council of Justice did not even provide responses,” it noted.
The watchdog also noted cases where information about hearings was not posted online or displayed in court buildings, further limiting public oversight.
Protracted Trials
The report said protest-related trials were intentionally protracted, with hearings held only once every two months — frequent enough to maintain detention but too infrequent to move cases forward. Defense lawyers argued that the delays were politically motivated.
“The proceedings were not completed in a timely manner on the grounds that President Salome Zurabishvili would not have been able to pardon the activists within the framework of her presidential powers,” the report added.
Restrictions on the Right to Defence
The group also reported violations of defendants’ right to defense, citing a case involving eleven defendants, in which a judge abruptly appointed public lawyers despite the defendants already having their own and objecting to the move. GYLA said there were “no legal grounds” for replacing their chosen lawyers.
“Preventive appointment of a public lawyer is not prescribed by criminal procedure legislation,” GYLA said. “Moreover, the factor of trust between a defendant and a lawyer must be taken into account, as the lawyer-client relationship is primarily based on trust.”
The move “seriously interfered” with the defendants’ right to defense and raised suspicions that the judge was rushing to finish the case before the nine-month detention limit expired. The report also noted problems with court interpreters, including poor translation, lack of neutrality, and inadequate training, which hindered foreign defendants’ ability to follow the proceedings and prepare their defense.
Judgements and Sentences
GYLA said courts adopted a strict and punitive approach that resulted in an overwhelmingly high conviction rate. Apart from three drug-related cases involving Giorgi Akhobadze, Tedo Abramov, and Nika Katsia, all protesters were found guilty.
The watchdog also questioned the evidence in drug cases, citing the absence of neutral witnesses and missing video footage from searches and seizures. In the few cases where videos were available, GYLA said the recordings raised concerns about their reliability and completeness.
Instrumentalisation of the Criminal Law
GYLA said the GD government used legal tools to “criminalize protests,” pointing to a last-minute change in law that expanded the definition of “strategic facilities” one day before the planned February 2 rally near Tbilisi Mall, resulting in the detention of peaceful protesters.
The change, which covered the exact protest location, “raises suspicions that the Georgian Dream abuses its powers in an attempt to deliberately hinder the exercise of the fundamental rights to freedom of assembly and expression,” the watchdog argued.
The Impunity of Special Force Officers and Their Commanders
“It is alarming that no criminal prosecution has been initiated against any individual responsible for violence committed against activists and journalists during the protests,” the report said.
GYLA also criticized the July abolition of the Special Investigation Service, arguing the move showed the government’s unwillingness to investigate police abuses or follow EU recommendations.
Also Read:
- 30/01/2025 – HRC Releases Critical Annual Human Rights Report
- 30/01/2025 – HRC Releases Critical Annual Human Rights Report
- 17/01/2025 – Government’s Actions in 2024 Led to Human Rights Crisis in Georgia, HRW Reports
- 10/12/2024 – CSOs Joint Statement Condemning Arrests, Torture, and Repression in Georgia
- 04/12/2024 – GYLA: State Institutions Are Involved in Crimes Against Humanity