Tbilisi hosts rallies demanding to release detained participants of protest actions

In Tbilisi, today is the third day of the protest action, demanding to release four prisoners Lasha Meskhiya, David Patsatsiya, Dachi Tsaguriya, and Bekar Aladashvili. In the capital of Georgia, protest actions and hunger strikes in connection with the facts of torture in prisons are underway.

"Driver of BMW car failed to obey to police order"

Seven protesters went on a hunger strike in front of the House of Justice in the centre of the capital, since they believe that Lasha Meskhiya, David Patsatsiya, Dachi Tsaguriya, and Bekar Aladashvili had been detained unlawfully.

However, according to the press service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA), Dachi Tsaguriya and Bekar Aladashvili were detained for violation of road traffic regulations, the patrol police ordered a driver of a BMW car to stop, and he failed to obey to the order.

"The patrol police forcibly stopped the car; the driver and his passenger Dachi Tsaguriya and Bekar Aladashvili behaved aggressively; they failed to present documents and inflicted physical and conscientious insult to the officer," reports the MIA's statement.

On September 22, the Tbilisi City Court sentenced them to a 10-day detention in custody under Article 173 of the Code of Administrative Violations.

Besides, in the evening of September 21, Lasha Meskhiya and David Patsatsiya were detained for the same violation. In particular, they were going to the place of the protest action in front of the House of Justice and did not obey to the order of the police, when they tried to break through a police cordon in a car. The cordon was put up to prevent at the place riots of participants of the protest actions against torture in prisons. The Tbilisi City Court sentenced Lasha Meskhiya and David Patsatsiya to a 40-day detention in custody.

"We need to create fair and effective civil society"

Meanwhile, in Tbilisi, protest actions against violence in prisons renewed. Today, students and teachers of the Theatrical University joined the rally in front of the Ministry of Defence (MoD).

The participants of the protest action demand to institute criminal proceedings against Bacho Akhalaya, ex-Minister of Internal Affairs, his brother Data Akhalaya, Deputy Minister of Defence, Khatuna Kalmakhelidze, Minister of Corrections and Legal Assistance, Zurab Adeishvili, Minister of Justice, and Murtaza Zodelava, Chief Prosecutor, the website "News.ge" reports.

Besides, the students took the initiative to install special bins for donations in the streets of Tbilisi. They plan to transfer the raised money to prisoners.

Today, in Tbilisi, representatives of NGOs and the Georgian society plan to gather in front of the building of the Philharmonic.

One more action is being held in the yard of the Tbilisi State University named after Ivane Javakhishvili. Organizers of the action the student movement "Laboratory 1918" call on all of the students of the country to join it.

"We will create a precedent to form an independent, impartial and effective civil society, which will have real tools to control any system of power and to resist violence and social injustice. We distance ourselves from all political parties and from their attempts to use the student protest to save power or to get power. We consider it unacceptable to manipulate religious or national feelings within the political space," the agency "News-Georgia" quotes representatives of the student movement "Laboratory 1918" as saying.

Till present, the number of participants, taking part in today's protest actions in Tbilisi, has not been reported.