Laituri Penitentiary No. 1 is undergoing final interior design works. Minister of Justice, Rati Bregadze, Deputy Minister, Erekle Gvinianidze and Head of the Special Penitentiary Service, Nika Tshvarashvili got acquainted today with the working process on the spot.

Laituri prison is a small penitentiary and is designed for about 700 prisoners.

Ensuring the highest standards of human rights protection and the living conditions of convicts/accused in Georgia, as well as constant care for the working environment of the employees of the Special Penitentiary Service, is one of the main priorities of the Ministry of Justice. The new Laituri penitentiary also serves this purpose. It is fully tailored to the needs of both accused/convicts and facility staff.

Laituri Penitentiary will be opened this year, where 500 people will be employed, including local residents.

Minister of Justice, Rati Bregadze and his Deputy, Erekle Gvinianidze discussed the current challenges and planned projects together with the employees of Imereti region.

The Minister personally listened to the employees about their needs and noted that meetings of a similar format contribute to the improvement of the results achieved by the agency.

According to the Minister, the opinions expressed by the employees at the previous meeting have been taken into account, and the challenges have been resolved. In particular, the material and technical base has been updated and the salaries of employees working in the region and the city have been equalized.

Continuous improvement of existing services and increasing access to services in the regions remains one of the priorities for the Ministry of Justice. For this purpose, the agency will intensively implement the development of innovative technologies and the construction of Public Service Halls in 2023.

The meeting was attended by employees of the State Services Development Agency, the Public Service Hall, the Public Registry, the National Archives, and the National Bureau of Enforcement.

The goal of the above-mentioned project financed within the grant program of the Ministry of Justice is to popularize legal education in educational institutions, strengthen legal culture, raise the level of legal awareness among schoolchildren and develop professional skills among the next generation of lawyers.

Initially, up to 30 students selected from law faculties of different universities will undergo a 5-day training in the field of human rights. Students with the best results identified on the basis of testing will hold informative and educational meetings with students of Tbilisi, Batumi, Lagodekhi and Gori schools.

The Ministry of Justice annually announces a grant competition for strengthening civil involvement in the agency's activities. Last year, the agency funded 17 best projects.

Representatives of the Ministry of Justice regularly monitor and support the progress of the funded projects.

The first stage of the project - "Promotion of legal education in the future generation for the security of the legal state and its institutional development" - is being conducted at Tbilisi State University and is led by the Scientific Society named after Tinatin Tsereteli.

The goal of the above-mentioned project financed within the grant program of the Ministry of Justice is to popularize legal education in educational institutions, strengthen legal culture, raise the level of legal awareness among schoolchildren and develop professional skills among the next generation of lawyers.

Initially, up to 30 students selected from law faculties of different universities will undergo a 5-day training in the field of human rights. Students with the best results identified on the basis of testing will hold informative and educational meetings with students of Tbilisi, Batumi, Lagodekhi and Gori schools.

The Ministry of Justice annually announces a grant competition for strengthening civil involvement in the agency's activities. Last year, the agency funded 17 best projects.

Representatives of the Ministry of Justice regularly monitor and support the progress of the funded projects.

One of the priorities of the Ministry of Justice is further improvement of access to state services for citizens. For this purpose, the construction of the Public Service Halls is taking place simultaneously in several cities - Khashuri, Zestaponi and Samtredia. Minister of Justice Rati Bregadze inspected today intensive construction works in Khashuri and Zestaponi together with his deputy, Erekle Gvinianidze.

The population of Khashuri and Zestaponi will be able to use up to 470 services of the Public Service Halls already this year and will receive all kinds of state services in one space and in a comfortable environment.

In addition to the service hall, a wedding and ritual space with a modern interior will be arranged in the new branches. The buildings will also house the offices of the LEPLS operating in the sphere of governance of the Ministry of Justice, which until now have been operating in an outdated infrastructure.

The Khashuri branch will be the ninth Public Service Hall in the Shida Kartli region, and the Zestaponi house of justice will be the 23rd in Imereti.

Currently, 117 Public Service Halls across the country offer more than 470 services of various public agencies and private sector to citizens on a one-stop basis.

The round table was held at the initiative of Minister of Justice, Rati Bregadze.

It was noted at the meeting that the Constitution of Georgia of February 21, 1921, even from today's point of view, looks like an advanced legal act based on the fundamental principles of constitutionalism. The first constitution laid the foundation for a parliamentary government system, proportional elections, independent and impartial justice; it banned the death penalty and declared human rights as the highest value.

At the end of the event, the participants of the discussion received gift editions of the first Constitution of Georgia, which was printed by the Legislative Herald of Georgia specially for this day.

The round table held today at the Ministry of Justice was dedicated to the adoption of the 1921 Constitution of the Democratic Republic of Georgia: "Constitution of the First Republic of Georgia - Eternal Values". The participants of the event - representatives of the Ministry of Justice, members of the Scientific Advisory Council, heads of legal faculties of Georgian universities, experts in the field of law - discussed the first constitution of Georgia.

The round table was held at the initiative of Minister of Justice, Rati Bregadze.

It was noted at the meeting that the Constitution of Georgia of February 21, 1921, even from today's point of view, looks like an advanced legal act based on the fundamental principles of constitutionalism. The first constitution laid the foundation for a parliamentary government system, proportional elections, independent and impartial justice; it banned the death penalty and declared human rights as the highest value.

At the end of the event, the participants of the discussion received gift editions of the first Constitution of Georgia, which was printed by the Legislative Herald of Georgia specially for this day.

The above-mentioned conclusion of the European Court is based on the information provided to the court by the applicant Akaki Ochigawa, as well as reports and documents published on the basis of the fact-finding visit of the Public Defender and non-governmental organizations, the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, as well as, decisions of national courts.

In addition, the European Court reviewed footage published in the Georgian media in September 2012 about the ill-treatment/torture of prisoners in various prison facilities, including Gldani prison (Penitentiary No. 8) (so-called “Prison Scandal").

From the decision of the Strasbourg court, it is established once again that torture of prisoners in Georgian prisons was practiced systematically, among others, in the following forms:

The practice of necessarily beating newly placed prisoners - the so-called quarantine procedure; systematic beating of prisoners several times a week; so-called long-term confinement in solitary confinement and small solitary cells for punishment, where there was nothing but a metal bed, and prisoners had to sit on cement floors during the day. The bed was folded and attached to the wall with a lock. The staff of the institution unfolded the bed and allowed the complainant to use it only between 10 pm and 8 am; the prisoners also had to stand up the whole time if several prisoners were placed in the cell at the same time; restriction of food intake and use of the toilet for the prisoners; permanent restrictions on meeting with family members; Covering them with a special kind of helmet and stuffing a ball in their mouths so that they could not talk; conversation between the prisoners was allowed only in whispers.

The purpose of this mistreatment was to force the prisoners to obey and cooperate with the prison administration. The complainant Akaki Ochigawa experienced the aforementioned forms of torture on himself. However, in November 2011, he was beaten with extreme cruelty, as a result of which he damaged his spine and lost the ability to walk. After complaining about the mentioned fact, the investigator advised him to declare that he got injured when he fell out of bed. The applicant refused, which is why the employees of the institution broke his toes with a baseball bat. Most of his fingers were deformed from multiple fractures. In addition, the applicant was not provided with proper medical care. In addition, during one of the incidents, the prison staff stripped him in the shower room, poured cold water on him and beat him severely with batons. There was a case when the applicant lost consciousness due to beatings, and after regaining consciousness, he found himself handcuffed to a pipe in the prison morgue, among the dead.

As a result of the above-mentioned treatment in the penitentiary, the applicant has been a disabled person since March 28, 2014.

Taking into account all of the above, the European Court found that the applicant was subjected to torture in Gldani prison and that it was part of the systemic torture that existed at the time, which was characteristic of the whole system.

It is worth noting that victims of ill-treatment did not report cases of torture both during non-personal and personal (family) contacts before the government changes of October 2012. This was partly due to the lack of hope for the improvement of the situation, the fear of further punishment and the ineffectiveness of the protection mechanisms. Akaki Ochigawa was also able to speak about improper treatment only after the change of government.

As the complainant told the prosecutor, he felt safe enough to file a complaint about ill-treatment in Gldani prison after the prison scandal and the October 2012 government changes.

As a result of the investigation of the Prosecutor's Office of Georgia, in 2017, a number of people were charged with the torture of Akaki Ochigawa, and on February 6, 2018, the defendants were found guilty by the Tbilisi City Court. The judgment was left unchanged by the Tbilisi Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Georgia. Akaki Ochigawa, an ex-convict, was known to be a victim in this case, along with other persons.

In spite of the above, taking into account the systematic nature and scale of the violation, the European Court also found flaws in the procedural part of Article 3 of the Convention (obligation to investigate), because the arrest and trial of the responsible persons took place 5 years after the occurrence of the contested facts, which was considered a long time for the execution of justice.

The court awarded the applicant 20,000 euros for moral damages.

On February 16, 2023, the European Court of Human Rights published its decision in the case Ochigawa v. Georgia, which proved once again that the torture and ill-treatment of prisoners in Georgian penitentiary institutions until 2012 "was a problem of a systematic nature and characteristic of the entire system".

The above-mentioned conclusion of the European Court is based on the information provided to the court by the applicant Akaki Ochigawa, as well as reports and documents published on the basis of the fact-finding visit of the Public Defender and non-governmental organizations, the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, as well as, decisions of national courts.

In addition, the European Court reviewed footage published in the Georgian media in September 2012 about the ill-treatment/torture of prisoners in various prison facilities, including Gldani prison (Penitentiary No. 8) (so-called “Prison Scandal").

From the decision of the Strasbourg court, it is established once again that torture of prisoners in Georgian prisons was practiced systematically, among others, in the following forms:

The practice of necessarily beating newly placed prisoners - the so-called quarantine procedure; systematic beating of prisoners several times a week; so-called long-term confinement in solitary confinement and small solitary cells for punishment, where there was nothing but a metal bed, and prisoners had to sit on cement floors during the day. The bed was folded and attached to the wall with a lock. The staff of the institution unfolded the bed and allowed the complainant to use it only between 10 pm and 8 am; the prisoners also had to stand up the whole time if several prisoners were placed in the cell at the same time; restriction of food intake and use of the toilet for the prisoners; permanent restrictions on meeting with family members; Covering them with a special kind of helmet and stuffing a ball in their mouths so that they could not talk; conversation between the prisoners was allowed only in whispers.

The purpose of this mistreatment was to force the prisoners to obey and cooperate with the prison administration. The complainant Akaki Ochigawa experienced the aforementioned forms of torture on himself. However, in November 2011, he was beaten with extreme cruelty, as a result of which he damaged his spine and lost the ability to walk. After complaining about the mentioned fact, the investigator advised him to declare that he got injured when he fell out of bed. The applicant refused, which is why the employees of the institution broke his toes with a baseball bat. Most of his fingers were deformed from multiple fractures. In addition, the applicant was not provided with proper medical care. In addition, during one of the incidents, the prison staff stripped him in the shower room, poured cold water on him and beat him severely with batons. There was a case when the applicant lost consciousness due to beatings, and after regaining consciousness, he found himself handcuffed to a pipe in the prison morgue, among the dead.

As a result of the above-mentioned treatment in the penitentiary, the applicant has been a disabled person since March 28, 2014.

Taking into account all of the above, the European Court found that the applicant was subjected to torture in Gldani prison and that it was part of the systemic torture that existed at the time, which was characteristic of the whole system.

It is worth noting that victims of ill-treatment did not report cases of torture both during non-personal and personal (family) contacts before the government changes of October 2012. This was partly due to the lack of hope for the improvement of the situation, the fear of further punishment and the ineffectiveness of the protection mechanisms. Akaki Ochigawa was also able to speak about improper treatment only after the change of government.

As the complainant told the prosecutor, he felt safe enough to file a complaint about ill-treatment in Gldani prison after the prison scandal and the October 2012 government changes.

As a result of the investigation of the Prosecutor's Office of Georgia, in 2017, a number of people were charged with the torture of Akaki Ochigawa, and on February 6, 2018, the defendants were found guilty by the Tbilisi City Court. The judgment was left unchanged by the Tbilisi Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Georgia. Akaki Ochigawa, an ex-convict, was known to be a victim in this case, along with other persons.

In spite of the above, taking into account the systematic nature and scale of the violation, the European Court also found flaws in the procedural part of Article 3 of the Convention (obligation to investigate), because the arrest and trial of the responsible persons took place 5 years after the occurrence of the contested facts, which was considered a long time for the execution of justice.

The court awarded the applicant 20,000 euros for moral damages.

Beka Dzamashvili provided the audience with detailed information about what stage the country is in the process of joining the European Union and what legal procedures remain to be followed on this path.

At the end of the meeting, Deputy Minister and Head of the European Union Department of the Ministry of Justice, Nugzar Dundua answered the students' questions.

Face-to-face communication with the public on current issues is a priority of the Ministry of Justice. During 2022, the leadership of the Ministry held public lectures on the subject of ongoing disputes against Russia in international courts; And this year, the agency is planning series of lectures on the issues of Georgia's integration with the European Union and their legal aspects.

The public lecture "Legal aspects of Georgia's integration into the European Union" was held in cooperation with the organization "Encom".