Trial of ex-minister of education of South Ossetia reappointed on March 19

In South Ossetia, on March 15, the premises of the Tskhinvali City Court hosted a judicial session on the case of Alla Dzhioeva, ex-minister of education, accused of abuse of office, bribery and forgery of documents of the Ministry of Education of the Republic of South Ossetia (RSO). Under request of the public prosecutor, the process was reappointed on March 19.

He explained his petition by non-appearance of all the victims in the courtroom.

Defendant Dzhioeva is still rejecting an advocate, although the court has offered one. In the course of the litigation, five parents were interrogated who suffered from the ex-minister in 2007. However, all of them refused to be regarded as victims.

According to Irina Kulumbegova, a teacher of music at the Tskhinvali Musical School, both her daughters had received quotas on entering Russian higher schools absolutely free of charge; and personally she had no claims to the defendant, only gratitude.

When asked by the state accuser Gamlet Kokoev, what sum and where Kulumbegova had paid as her voluntary donations, she answered that she really paid 3000 roubles in 2007 to the cash department of the Ministry of Education of the RSO as a voluntary donation.

In the end of interrogation Ms Kulumbegova has flatly refused to be recognized as a victim. When asked by Kokoev why then she had signed the respective paper at the preliminary interrogation, she said that she had signed the protocol with her answers to inspectors' questions, not the paper on her recognition as a victim.

According to defendant Dzhioeva "all the raised money were spent on buying writing goods and salaries to the members of the commission, who were not employees of the ministry and on voluntary conditions worked up to midnight as members of the examination board, correcting entrants' written works."

Ms Dzhioeva has also stated violations in running her criminal case and collecting evidences; and also violations of her custody conditions.

The state accuser parried saying that he has enough proofs for making her responsible.

The defendant has refused to plead guilty.