PM Vows to Accomplish ‘Restoration of Justice’

PM Irakli Garibashvili said that although voters “delivered political verdict” against former ruling United National Movement (UNM) party in elections more than two years ago, “wounds” left by “the Saakashvili regime” will not be healed until rights of victims of those “crimes” committed under the previous government are restored and perpetrators brought to justice. 

The PM made the remarks at a presentation of new unit within the Prosecutor’s Office tasked with handling thousands of complaints, which were filed with prosecutor’s office by citizens since the change of government in 2012 over alleged cases of seizure of property by the state, ill-treatment in prisons and other alleged wrongdoings committed by the officials when UNM party was in power. The new unit is headed by prosecutor Irakli Nadareishvili, who led prosecution in some of the high-profile cases against former senior officials, among them former interior minister Vano Merabishvili.

New unit within the prosecutor’s office, which is made up of its head, his deputy, four prosecutors and ten investigators, will have to handle over 10,300 complaints. Prosecutor Irakli Nadareishvili, head of the unit, said that 697 of them are related to alleged illegal seizure of property by the state; 3,495 complaints are related to alleged crimes committed by law enforcement and penitentiary system officials; remaining 6,187 complaints, Nadareishvili said, are related to other types of alleged crimes.

Speaking at the event, also attended by Tbilisi-based foreign diplomats, PM Garibashvili said that “lot has been done” for “restoration of justice” since the Georgian Dream ruling coalition came into power, but “many cases still remain to be investigated.”

“After we came into power the prosecutor’s office launched to study thousands of complaints [filed with the prosecutor’s office]… the economy ministry was also involved in this process” as many complaints are related to alleged cases of involuntary transfer of properties to the state, Garibashvili said at the event in presence of Tbilisi-based foreign diplomats.

“More than two years have passed since our people delivered political verdict against the United National Movement. Rights of many citizens have been restored, but of course wounds still remain, which have to be healed,” he said.

“But wounds will not be healed until every crime is called by its name and those involved in those crimes are held accountable, especially those who planned and ordered those crimes,” the PM said.

“This is an issue over which our people are concerned most of all,” he continued. “This is a matter of dignity of our citizens and our country. It is impossible to build a modern, civilized, democratic state – the state, based on rule of law and European values, which is an ambition of our government – without it.”

“Our people were humiliated, insulted for years; properties of many of them were seized, many of them were imprisoned illegally in inhuman and humiliating conditions,” Garibashvili said. “Their lives were destroyed. Today these people are waiting for answers with patience. We have numerous documents; there is evidence of how arrests and torture were used for political persecution, for confiscation of their property and for many other illegal purposes. I want to remind everyone that Saakashvili’s regime put on trial 300,000 people, 300,000 citizens of Georgia – this is a huge number in Georgia with population of 4.5 million. Of course it has nothing to do with democracy, human rights.”

“We understand very well responsibility, which we have before these people,” he said, adding that some former senior officials have already been prosecuted and some others are under investigation.

He also said that “restoration of violated rights of our citizens” should not be done hastily.

“It needs time,” Garibashvili said. “No matter how fast we may want it, we cannot artificially speed up this process. Interests of our country, of our future generations may fall victim to hasty steps taken in the name of restoration of justice, which is completely inadmissible. That’s why we should not have hurried; this process required thorough deliberation.”

“But one thing is clear – everyone, who planned and organized these crimes, should be held responsible. It should become an example for any government in this country that criminals, no matter who they are, will not remain unpunished in Georgia. We have declared that no one should be above the law in our country,” Garibashvili said.

He said that consideration is still underway to exempt from punishment low and mid-level officials, who “exceeded their powers, but have not committed criminal offense” and to mainly focus on those, who “organized” alleged crimes.

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