Minister Slams Timing of HRW Report

The release of a Human Rights Watch (HRW) report on the November 7 events in the middle of a tense election campaign was inappropriate, Justice Minister Eka Tkeshelashvili said on December 20.

?The timing of this report only serves to damage the reputation of Human Rights Watch and I am sorry that it [HRW] took this step and did not think of its reputation,? Tkeshelashvili said. ?A human rights group should not only be unbiased and neutral, but it should also be seen to be.?

Speaking on a late-night Imedi TV political talk show, Tkeshelashvili emphasized that her criticism of HRW only applied to this particular case.

?I am not analyzing Human Rights Watch?s international credibility,? she said. ?Although, its treatment of the United States and in particular the Bush administration has been quite biased.?

The HRW report, issued on December 20, said that the November 7 violence had exposed the Georgian government?s ?shaky commitment to human rights and the rule of law.? It also called on the west to confront Georgia over the issue.

The report followed an earlier one by International Crisis Group. On December 19, the Brussels-based think-tank also called on the west to apply ?concerted pressure on Saakashvili and his administration to correct their increasingly authoritarian course.?

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