CoE Human Rights Chief Visits Georgia

Thomas Hammarberg, the Council of Europe’s commissioner for human rights, is visiting Georgia on September 25-28 as part of a follow-up mission to the areas affected by the August war.

“The aim of my visit is to assess the implementation of the six principles for urgent protection of human rights and humanitarian security which I proposed in my report after the previous visit to the region on 22-29 August,” the commissioner said. “These principles have been endorsed at the international level and accepted by all relevant actors involved in the conflict. It is fundamental that concrete measures are now taken to ensure their effective implementation.”

The six human rights and humanitarian principles cover the right to return of displaced persons; the provision of adequate aid and living conditions for the displaced until their return home; defining efforts in the war affected areas; addressing urgently the law and order vacuum as well as personal insecurity in the ‘buffer zone’; humanitarian exchanges of  prisoners of war, other detainees and stranded persons as well as ensuring international presence and assistance in the affected areas to address human rights and humanitarian issues. 

The commissioner will meet with Georgian officials, the ombudsman and internally displaced persons, and visit Gori and Tskhinvali.

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