AI states increased pressure on Georgian judges

The political pressure on judges and selectivity of justice have particularly manifested themselves in Georgia at the trial of Gigi Ugulava, while the issue of the freedom of expression was raised in the course of legal battles around the "Rustavi 2" TV Channel, says the report of the Amnesty International (AI).

"There is still a worrisome selectivity of justice and politically motivated prosecutions," says the annual report of the AI.

According to the report, the political pressure on judges was particularly evident in the decision of the Constitutional Court dated September 17, 2015, to release Ugulava from custody.

According to the AI, in 2015, the Georgian police several times prevented peaceful assemblies or restricted them.

In particular, on March 15, 2015, in the city of Zugdidi, about 50 supporters of the ruling coalition "Georgian Dream" attacked the office of the local branch of the oppositional "United National Movement" (UNM) Party; and nine people were injured as a result.

Also, the growth of political tension has to do with the leakage of the record of a conversation of the former President Mikhail Saakashvili with the bosses of the "Rustavi-2", the AI's report says.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.