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According to the de facto public defender of occupied Abkhazia, there is an alarming situation in prisons of Abkhazia
18.03.2024
According to the report of Anas Kishmaria, commissioner for human rights of occupied Abkhazia, which she presented to the de facto parliament of Abkhazia on March 14, the rights situation of prisoners in Abkhazia is alarming. According to her, the execution of punishment in prisons is tantamount to torture and inhuman treatment, which affects the physical health and mental condition of prisoners. Anas Kishmaria says this is contrary to the principles of humanity and respect for human dignity. According to the report, the main problems include the lack of proper medical services, lack of minimum sanitary standards, problems related to the feeding of prisoners, lack of cells, places and beds, old buildings and problems with proper time planning. The placement of prisoners in similar conditions is contrary to the goals of crime prevention and resocialization of offenders, which insults their dignity, leads to their further marginalization and increase in crime rate.

Many citizens of Georgia are serving sentences or waiting for a court decision in prisons in Abkhazia, including Georgian citizens in illegal detention: Kristine Takalandze, Asmat Tavadze and Irakli Bebua. In this regard, the condition of Irakli Bebua is particularly noteworthy, whose health, according to the latest data, was deteriorating.

The placement of prisoners in such conditions is contrary to the UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners; In particular, the basic requirements and principles related to sanitary norms, compliance with the conditions of accommodation and guarantees of adequate food (rules 9, 10, 12, 20).

The Democracy Research Institute:

Calls on the authorities of Georgia and the international community to use all the mechanisms at their disposal to allow international monitoring missions to check the situation of human rights in the penitentiary institutions of occupied Abkhazia;

Considers that the authorities should create communication lines with the de facto authorities of Abkhazia in order to facilitate the timely release of Georgian citizens placed in Abkhazia's penitentiary institutions;

The Public Defender of Georgia should use the constitutional mandate to promote the release of persons illegally detained in the occupied territories.