Georgian Ombudsman states violations of prisoners' rights

The report notes that the system of serving punishments in Georgia remains "one of problematic issues" and, in particular, lists eight establishments, where the number of inmates exceeds the capacity of the facility.

"Some prisons are so overcrowded that intolerable conditions there can be treated as inhuman and degrading treatment of inmates," runs the report.

According to the Ombudsman's office, although construction of new prisons helped to improve custody conditions, "the problem is far from final solution."

The report also mentioned prisoners' complaints sent to office on bad treatment by the prison administration.

Thus, the report describes the case, when on December 12, 2009, a prisoner hung himself up in the dungeon of the second corrective establishment in Kutaisi. In the context of the fact, the Investigatory Department started a preliminary inquiry under the article of "incitement to suicide". However, injuries were detected on the victim's body, inflicted during his life, which were registered in the forensic conclusion. The "Georgia Online" reports that the Ombudsman has addressed his request to the Chief Public Prosecutor to take the investigation of this case under his personal supervision.

As to the judicial system, the report says that the Ombudsman's office has analysed a number of criminal and administrative cases considered by the courts. "One of the most problematic issues of the judicial system is the issue of insufficient argumentativeness of intermediate or final court decisions," runs the report.

Besides, the document states that the reporting period saw facts of bad treatment of detainees by the police and reminds that the previous report, which covered the first half of 2009, fixed an increased number of such facts and cases of excessive use of force and abuse of powers by the police in Western Georgia. It is emphasized that "the same trend is seen also in the second half of 2009."

In the reporting period "the Ombudsman learnt about seven facts of persecutions and attacks on religious grounds." "Out of them, six cases refer to the actions against activists of the religious association of Jehovah's Witnesses, and one - to the member of the Evangelical-Protestant Church of Georgia," runs the report. According to the document, nobody was brought to justice for such attacks in second half of 2009, as the "Сivil.ge" reports.