ECHR Rules No Violation in Melia v. Georgia Case

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has ruled in the case Melia v. Georgia, that there had been no violation of the right to liberty and security and no violation of the limitation on the use of restrictions on rights.

The applicant Nikanor (Nika) Melia, former Chairman of the United National Movement party and former MP, complained under Article 5 §§ 1 and 3 (right to liberty and security) and and Article 18 (limitation on use of restrictions on rights) of the European Convention on Human Rights that his pre-trial detention was unjustified and aimed at keeping him out of political life. Nika Melia was arrested for taking part in the protest and calling for control of the parliament building to be regained during a demonstration in Georgia on June 20-21, 2019, sparked by the fact that Sergei Gavrilov, Russian communist MP, addressed the Inter-parliamentary Assembly on Orthodoxy session held in the Georgian Parliament from the Speaker’s seat.

The Court’s assessment indicates that, based on its findings regarding the applicant’s complaints under Article 5 § 1 of the Convention, there is no need to address a separate issue under Article 5 § 3 of the Convention in the case.

The Georgian Government submitted that the matter had been resolved given the applicant’s release from pre-trial detention, his return to active political life by having participated in the mayoral elections, and the possibility of having the Amnesty Act applied in respect of the criminal proceedings against him.

The Court concluded: “Although the applicant’s detention was ordered against the backdrop of bitter political antagonism between, on the one hand, the UNM and other opposition parties and, on the other hand, the ruling Georgian Dream party, the various points cited by the applicant, taken separately or in combination with each other, do not form a sufficiently homogenous whole for the Court to find that the applicant’s detention pursued a purpose not prescribed by the Convention”.

Also Read:

• 08/05/2021 – EU Posts Bail for Melia
• 13/04/2021 – Court Remands UNM Chair Melia in Custody
• 23/02/2021 – Police Storm UNM Office, Detain Nika Melia

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