Influential Advocacy Group Hails Police for Suppressing Prison Riot

Tea Tutberidze of an influential human rights advocacy group Liberty Institute said on March 27 that use of police force against rioters in the Tbilisi’s 5th prison early on Monday was justified, as “riot of this kind by criminals should be suppressed.”

“If the state fails to curb riots of these kinds it means that the state does not exist at all… Very severe measures, envisaged by the law, should be used to suppress this kind of riot… Unfortunately those [inmates] who have nothing common with the riot might also suffer, but in this situation it is impossible to identify who is involved [in riot] and who is not,” Tea Tutberidze said.

But other human right groups slammed law enforcers for use of excessive force against inmates and demanded resignation of prison system chief Bacho Akhalaia.

Official have not yet reported number of those inmates who died as a result of clash with police special unit.