On June 26, Irakli Kupradze, Secretary General of the opposition party Lelo for Georgia, was recognized as an aggrieved party more than two months after he was beaten by police during protests against the foreign agents law.
The opposition politician was detained during the peaceful protest on April 16. He accused riot police of politically motivated brutality and said that he was severely beaten during and after the detention.
The Special Investigation Service opened an investigation under Article 333 of the Criminal Code, which deals with the use of force or a weapon in abuse of official authority. According to the politician’s lawyer, Irakli Kupradze was subjected to physical violence by the police, which he says is evident from the video footage. However, the footage does not identify the police officer who beat him.
“These special forces must be punished. It is impossible to imagine their presence in law enforcement. The fact that sadists work in law enforcement [would be] against the interests of the state,” Kupradze said.
During the protests against the foreign agents law and after its subsequent adoption, many opposition politicians, members of civil society, activists, and ordinary citizens were battered by law enforcement or by the alleged government-paid “titushky”. Many of those detained during the protests also reported physical abuse by the police. In some cases, no investigation has been opened.
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