Tbilisi City Court Judge Koba Chagunava has ordered activist brothers, a protestor Otar Murvelashvili and opposition party members, who were arrested during the ongoing rallies against the draft law on foreign agents, to pay fines of GEL 2200-2500. They were found guilty of violating Article 173 of the Code of Administrative Offenses, which implies disobedience to the lawful request of a police officer, and Article 166 – petty hooliganism.
The protesters’ human rights defender, the Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association (GYLA), told Civil.ge that Sandro Jokhadze, an 18-year-old high school student, was ordered to pay GEL 2200 on April 25. Speaking to Netgazeti, Sandro said that only two policemen were present at the court as witnesses, and that although he had four witnesses and a video recording that clearly showed that these policemen were nowhere near him during the arrest, the judge came to the decision that the Ministry of Internal Affairs wanted.
Sandro and his brother, Giga Jokhadze, both claim to have been physically abused during their arrest. Giga Jokhadze, a researcher at the Chavchavadze Center, was fined GEL 2500. The brothers’ lawyer, Jano Chkadua, told Netgazeti that in both cases the witnesses gave false testimony to the court and that the video recordings of the policeman supported the brothers’ arguments more than the witnesses.
Another protester Otar Murvelashvili was fined GEL 2300 for violating the same articles of the Code of Administrative Offenses.
As for one of the leaders of “Lelo – For Georgia”, Irakli Kupradze, he was fined GEL 2500 on April 24. Kupradze’s arrest was recorded by the cameras of several TV channels and it is clearly visible that he had his hands in the air and did not resist the police. Netgazeti reports that, despite this clear evidence, the judge refused to request footage from cameras around the Parliament and, as Kupradze wrote on his Facebook page, the media were kicked out of the courtroom during the proceedings.
Another opposition member, Gela Khasaia from “Girchi – More Freedom” was fined GEL 2600 on April 24, despite eyewitness accounts and video footage proving that he did nothing illegal during the protests.
Also Read:
- 17/04/2024 – Photo Story | Riot Police Use Pepper Spray to Break Up Protest Against “Foreign Agents Law,” Arrest Protesters
- 16/04/2024 – Riot Police Attempt to Disperse Demonstrators with Pepper Spray, Detentions
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