The destructive behaviour the radical opposition engages in to maintain its political vitality is no novelty to our society. Hence, it should not come as a surprise that they are trying to politicize the human health to achieve their political goals, and even make it an object of manipulation.

An active campaign, which has been underway for the past two days to have prisoner Mikheil Saakashvili transferred to an intensive care unit, is aimed to create an erroneous impression of his real health condition, artificially build emotional tension and intentionally portray as unfair the government’s actions. It was part of this campaign that Saakashvili’s lawyer and members of his political team spread the fake news the prisoner had allegedly been moved to intensive care."

When it comes to medical treatment, we rely on the opinion of healthcare professionals, rather than on the misleading and groundless allegations of some politically motivated persons. According to yesterday's statement by the Vivamed Clinic director, the patient has no swallowing problems or any other disorder that would prevent food intake. The defendant was offered a parenteral nutrition, which he categorically rejected claiming that he would only agree to it if he were placed in intensive care. Physiological parameters of the patient remain within the norm and his body mass index does not qualify him for ICU admission. This means that there is no objective reason for referring the patient to an intensive care unit. Hence, it is necessary for our society to know that the parenteral nutrition that can be freely administered in the hospital ward where defendant Saakashvili is currently placed, is made impossible by the defendant himself who refuses to be administered intravenous nutrition and prevents the medical staff from carrying out their duties. As for ultimatums and threats of self-harm, they are categorically unacceptable to us and to our society.

This refusal by the defendant is but an act of self-injury for which the responsibility rests with the defendant himself and those persons who are actively engaged in various forms of encouraging and promoting self-harm. We would like to remind our society that when the defendant went on hunger strike, the penitentiary authorities called on him to end the hunger strike, while the politically motivated persons continued to encourage him to deteriorate his health-condition by refusing food intake.

In response to his lawyers’ allegations that he might be poisoned, we offered the defendant toxicological examination which he rejected. He refuses to provide samples for forensic examination, which indicated that he is not interested in ascertaining the truth.

In line with our duty to take care of his health, we suggested to defendant Saakashvili and his lawyers to invite medical professionals from any foreign clinic,whom we would assist to engage in his treatment. However, they did not respond to this offer either.. Hunger, insufficient caloric intake, failure to submit samples required for forensic examination, selective administration of medications, constant threats and insults to medical staff and direct or indirect encouragement of such actions are far from being the behaviour of the person who is interested in the defendant’s health. Quite the contrary, this whole chain of activities is aimed at worsening the state of his health and thereby making it possible to avoid the sentence.

Undoubtedly, our duty is to take care of the health of the prisoner, which we always perform for any prisoner. The convict Saakashvili received timely medical assistance at all stages of detention, and he is still in the clinic.

Since 2012, the shameful period of torture and inhuman treatment of prisoners in penitentiaries has gone down in history in Georgia. Today’s Georgian state operates in accordance with the highest standards of human rights in relation to prisoners.

The Ministry of Justice, the Special Penitentiary Service, a medical institution and individual doctors cannot be held liable for self-mutilation of a prisoner, including failure to comply with medical prescriptions.
Considering the 500-day political campaign, the behaviour of the prisoner towards the medical staff and his regular self-harm, the employees of the Special Penitentiary Service and medical personnel have to perform their duties in difficult conditions, and it is unacceptable that these people become objects of insults and threats.

In addition, any attempt to shift responsibility for self-mutilation of a prisoner to those persons through political campaigns is categorically unacceptable. I would like to take this opportunity to thank these people for their decent service.

We are witnessing a political campaign aimed at harming the image of the state, and a completely unacceptable attempt by a particular prisoner to secure an escape from prison through self-harm. Based on the interests of the state, it is natural that the Minister of Justice cannot be loyal to this fact. Since this is a dangerous precedent that could have an encouraging effect on the behaviour of other prisoners, it may become a serious challenge to national security.

I’ll repeat again that we can only be held responsible for the proper performance of our duty, but in no way for the self-harm of a prisoner, manifested in his selective intake of non-caloric food and regular non-compliance with medical prescriptions.

Based on the best interests of the prisoner’s health, we call on everyone to immediately stop supporting the self-mutilation of prisoner Mikheil Saakashvili, call on him to follow medical recommendations that are beneficial for his health and stop politicizing the issue of the execution of the sentence.

Georgia is a state of law, which, on the one hand, protects the rights of the prisoner, and at the same time ensures the enforcement of the law, which in this case is expressed by the execution of the sentence.”

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"We will make a statement regarding the campaign to transfer Mikheil Saakashvili to an intensive care unit and will give an outline of the injury acts prisoner Mikheil Saakashvili has caused to himself.

The destructive behaviour the radical opposition engages in to maintain its political vitality is no novelty to our society. Hence, it should not come as a surprise that they are trying to politicize the human health to achieve their political goals, and even make it an object of manipulation.

An active campaign, which has been underway for the past two days to have prisoner Mikheil Saakashvili transferred to an intensive care unit, is aimed to create an erroneous impression of his real health condition, artificially build emotional tension and intentionally portray as unfair the government’s actions. It was part of this campaign that Saakashvili’s lawyer and members of his political team spread the fake news the prisoner had allegedly been moved to intensive care."

When it comes to medical treatment, we rely on the opinion of healthcare professionals, rather than on the misleading and groundless allegations of some politically motivated persons. According to yesterday's statement by the Vivamed Clinic director, the patient has no swallowing problems or any other disorder that would prevent food intake. The defendant was offered a parenteral nutrition, which he categorically rejected claiming that he would only agree to it if he were placed in intensive care. Physiological parameters of the patient remain within the norm and his body mass index does not qualify him for ICU admission. This means that there is no objective reason for referring the patient to an intensive care unit. Hence, it is necessary for our society to know that the parenteral nutrition that can be freely administered in the hospital ward where defendant Saakashvili is currently placed, is made impossible by the defendant himself who refuses to be administered intravenous nutrition and prevents the medical staff from carrying out their duties. As for ultimatums and threats of self-harm, they are categorically unacceptable to us and to our society.

This refusal by the defendant is but an act of self-injury for which the responsibility rests with the defendant himself and those persons who are actively engaged in various forms of encouraging and promoting self-harm. We would like to remind our society that when the defendant went on hunger strike, the penitentiary authorities called on him to end the hunger strike, while the politically motivated persons continued to encourage him to deteriorate his health-condition by refusing food intake.

In response to his lawyers’ allegations that he might be poisoned, we offered the defendant toxicological examination which he rejected. He refuses to provide samples for forensic examination, which indicated that he is not interested in ascertaining the truth.

In line with our duty to take care of his health, we suggested to defendant Saakashvili and his lawyers to invite medical professionals from any foreign clinic,whom we would assist to engage in his treatment. However, they did not respond to this offer either.. Hunger, insufficient caloric intake, failure to submit samples required for forensic examination, selective administration of medications, constant threats and insults to medical staff and direct or indirect encouragement of such actions are far from being the behaviour of the person who is interested in the defendant’s health. Quite the contrary, this whole chain of activities is aimed at worsening the state of his health and thereby making it possible to avoid the sentence.

Undoubtedly, our duty is to take care of the health of the prisoner, which we always perform for any prisoner. The convict Saakashvili received timely medical assistance at all stages of detention, and he is still in the clinic.

Since 2012, the shameful period of torture and inhuman treatment of prisoners in penitentiaries has gone down in history in Georgia. Today’s Georgian state operates in accordance with the highest standards of human rights in relation to prisoners.

The Ministry of Justice, the Special Penitentiary Service, a medical institution and individual doctors cannot be held liable for self-mutilation of a prisoner, including failure to comply with medical prescriptions.
Considering the 500-day political campaign, the behaviour of the prisoner towards the medical staff and his regular self-harm, the employees of the Special Penitentiary Service and medical personnel have to perform their duties in difficult conditions, and it is unacceptable that these people become objects of insults and threats.

In addition, any attempt to shift responsibility for self-mutilation of a prisoner to those persons through political campaigns is categorically unacceptable. I would like to take this opportunity to thank these people for their decent service.

We are witnessing a political campaign aimed at harming the image of the state, and a completely unacceptable attempt by a particular prisoner to secure an escape from prison through self-harm. Based on the interests of the state, it is natural that the Minister of Justice cannot be loyal to this fact. Since this is a dangerous precedent that could have an encouraging effect on the behaviour of other prisoners, it may become a serious challenge to national security.

I’ll repeat again that we can only be held responsible for the proper performance of our duty, but in no way for the self-harm of a prisoner, manifested in his selective intake of non-caloric food and regular non-compliance with medical prescriptions.

Based on the best interests of the prisoner’s health, we call on everyone to immediately stop supporting the self-mutilation of prisoner Mikheil Saakashvili, call on him to follow medical recommendations that are beneficial for his health and stop politicizing the issue of the execution of the sentence.

Georgia is a state of law, which, on the one hand, protects the rights of the prisoner, and at the same time ensures the enforcement of the law, which in this case is expressed by the execution of the sentence.”

In particular, according to the assessment of the European Court, the Georgian legislation regulating the use of force/weapons by law enforcement officers met the standards established by the Strasbourg Court. The Court took into account the fact that the operation to arrest Temirlan Machalikashvili was carried out in the context of the fight against terrorism, and armed resistance was expected from him. According to the decision of the European Court, the version established by the investigation is reliable, that Temirlan Machalikashvili, during his arrest, did not obey the instruction of a member of the special forces and tried to use a hand grenade, at which time a shot was fired at him. According to the assessment of the Strasbourg court, there is no evidence that would give rise to a reasonable assumption that Temirlan Machalikashvili died under such circumstances that would trigger the state's responsibility. Accordingly, no violation of the essential part of Article 2 (right to life) of the European Convention was established.

As for the procedural issue, the European Court noted that the Prosecutor's Office immediately started an investigation into the case, although the initial investigative actions were carried out by the State Security Service as part of the counter-terrorist operation, therefore, the same body obtained the initial evidence of the person who conducted the operation.

The European Court did not share the arguments of the applicants that the investigation carried out by the Prosecutor's Office was limited only to establishing the circumstances of the wounding of Temirlan Machalikashvili and noted that the members of the special task force were also questioned about the instructions given to them before the special operation, which testifies that the Prosecutor's Office was investigating not only the conduct of the special operation, but also its planning.

The court also responded to the claim of the complainants regarding the movement of the hand grenade after the special operation and stated that since Temirlan Machalikashvili was wounded during the operation, it was necessary to provide him with first aid on the spot, which is why it became necessary to remove the items in the room, including the hand grenade. According to the court's assessment, it is true that due to the aforementioned, further investigation was hindered in establishing separate circumstances, however, the need to find first aid for a seriously injured person should be given priority over the need to keep the investigation site intact.

According to the decision of the Strasbourg Court, the authorities of the Prosecutor's Office of Georgia took a number of measures in order to fully collect the evidence. Almost everyone involved in and related to the incident was interviewed, including the appellants, the officers involved in the operation of the Special Tasks Department, their supervisors, as well as medical personnel, a number of examinations were conducted and other types of evidence were obtained, although the special forces were interviewed after five weeks because their identity was not made public and the appropriate procedures were ongoing.

The European Court positively evaluated the participation of the applicants in the present case in the investigation process. In particular, the complainants had the opportunity to familiarize themselves with the investigation material, and the investigative body met the complainants' demands regarding the conduct of investigative activities. It was at their request that the head, deputy head and officers of the anti-terrorist department of the State Security Service were additionally questioned. However, the court also noted that they could not get to know the secret part of the case until the final stage of the investigation.

Due to the individual deficiencies mentioned at the initial stage of the investigation, according to the European Court, the procedural part of Article 2 of the Convention was violated.

As for the claims of the petitioners regarding their improper treatment during the special operation, they are clearly unfounded.

The Strasbourg court, based on the documentation submitted by the government, first noted that the counter-terrorist operation served the legitimate purpose of arresting Temirlan Machalikashvili and searching his house. Accordingly, the court did not question the reasonable grounds and necessity of the counter-terrorist operation. As for the psychological impact of the operation, due to the nature of the counter-terrorist operation, the European Court found that the stress caused by the operation is an accompanying emotion, and there is no evidence within the scope of the case to prove that the applicants suffered more negative emotional effects based on the actions of the representatives of the State Security Service than those associated with this type of special operation process. While discussing this issue, the court also emphasized the fact that the applicants, at the first stage, did not make any claims regarding the actions of the representatives of the State Security Service.

The court awarded the applicants jointly EUR 10,000 for non-pecuniary damage and EUR 15,000 for costs.

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The European Court of Human Rights published its decision on the case "Machalikashvili and others v. Georgia" and determined that Article 2 of the European Convention (right to life) was not violated in the essential part.

In particular, according to the assessment of the European Court, the Georgian legislation regulating the use of force/weapons by law enforcement officers met the standards established by the Strasbourg Court. The Court took into account the fact that the operation to arrest Temirlan Machalikashvili was carried out in the context of the fight against terrorism, and armed resistance was expected from him. According to the decision of the European Court, the version established by the investigation is reliable, that Temirlan Machalikashvili, during his arrest, did not obey the instruction of a member of the special forces and tried to use a hand grenade, at which time a shot was fired at him. According to the assessment of the Strasbourg court, there is no evidence that would give rise to a reasonable assumption that Temirlan Machalikashvili died under such circumstances that would trigger the state's responsibility. Accordingly, no violation of the essential part of Article 2 (right to life) of the European Convention was established.

As for the procedural issue, the European Court noted that the Prosecutor's Office immediately started an investigation into the case, although the initial investigative actions were carried out by the State Security Service as part of the counter-terrorist operation, therefore, the same body obtained the initial evidence of the person who conducted the operation.

The European Court did not share the arguments of the applicants that the investigation carried out by the Prosecutor's Office was limited only to establishing the circumstances of the wounding of Temirlan Machalikashvili and noted that the members of the special task force were also questioned about the instructions given to them before the special operation, which testifies that the Prosecutor's Office was investigating not only the conduct of the special operation, but also its planning.

The court also responded to the claim of the complainants regarding the movement of the hand grenade after the special operation and stated that since Temirlan Machalikashvili was wounded during the operation, it was necessary to provide him with first aid on the spot, which is why it became necessary to remove the items in the room, including the hand grenade. According to the court's assessment, it is true that due to the aforementioned, further investigation was hindered in establishing separate circumstances, however, the need to find first aid for a seriously injured person should be given priority over the need to keep the investigation site intact.

According to the decision of the Strasbourg Court, the authorities of the Prosecutor's Office of Georgia took a number of measures in order to fully collect the evidence. Almost everyone involved in and related to the incident was interviewed, including the appellants, the officers involved in the operation of the Special Tasks Department, their supervisors, as well as medical personnel, a number of examinations were conducted and other types of evidence were obtained, although the special forces were interviewed after five weeks because their identity was not made public and the appropriate procedures were ongoing.

The European Court positively evaluated the participation of the applicants in the present case in the investigation process. In particular, the complainants had the opportunity to familiarize themselves with the investigation material, and the investigative body met the complainants' demands regarding the conduct of investigative activities. It was at their request that the head, deputy head and officers of the anti-terrorist department of the State Security Service were additionally questioned. However, the court also noted that they could not get to know the secret part of the case until the final stage of the investigation.

Due to the individual deficiencies mentioned at the initial stage of the investigation, according to the European Court, the procedural part of Article 2 of the Convention was violated.

As for the claims of the petitioners regarding their improper treatment during the special operation, they are clearly unfounded.

The Strasbourg court, based on the documentation submitted by the government, first noted that the counter-terrorist operation served the legitimate purpose of arresting Temirlan Machalikashvili and searching his house. Accordingly, the court did not question the reasonable grounds and necessity of the counter-terrorist operation. As for the psychological impact of the operation, due to the nature of the counter-terrorist operation, the European Court found that the stress caused by the operation is an accompanying emotion, and there is no evidence within the scope of the case to prove that the applicants suffered more negative emotional effects based on the actions of the representatives of the State Security Service than those associated with this type of special operation process. While discussing this issue, the court also emphasized the fact that the applicants, at the first stage, did not make any claims regarding the actions of the representatives of the State Security Service.

The court awarded the applicants jointly EUR 10,000 for non-pecuniary damage and EUR 15,000 for costs.

The Minister of Justice visited the 5th, 6th, 17th, 16th and 12th penitentiary institutions and personally congratulated each employee on a wonderful Christmas holiday. Rati Bregadze thanked the employees for their decent service and wished them success.

Christmas liturgy was celebrated in all functioning churches of penitentiary institutions.

The Ministry of Justice wishes you a merry Christmas.

As it is known, the Public Service Hall will work as usual on the weekend of January 3-6.

In addition, from January 3, 88 community centers will continue to operate under the Public Service Hall brand.

As part of the change, services for citizens have been leveled at all locations. In particular, all the services available in the Public Service Hall in the former community centers have been introduced in addition to the renewal of infrastructure.

Residents of those villages and towns, or visitors, where community centers functioned, already have the opportunity to receive almost double the number of state services, with the usual high standard of the Public Service Hall.

From 2023, the number of branches of the Public Service Hall will be 117 throughout Georgia, and the number of services will be more than 470.
On January 3-6, all services of the Public Service Hall will be available to users.

An exception is the services of the Service Agency of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. In particular, the documents to be issued on January 3-6 will be available to users from January 9.

The Ministry of Justice congratulates you on the new year.

Rati Bregadze met in the new year at the base of the Main Department of Escorting and Special Events.

The Minister thanked the representatives of the department for their service to the country and awarded the successful employees. The Minister expressed his belief that the new year 2023 will be a year of peace, development and prosperity for our country.

Minister of Justice, Rati Bregadze also congratulated the employees of Penitentiary Institution No. 8 and the National Agency for Crime Prevention, Non-custodial Sentences and Probation.

The Ministry of Justice congratulates you on the new year 2023!

http://iustitia.gov.ge).
Along with the presentation of the website, the newly published third issue of the magazine was also presented to the invited guests.

The Georgian-English magazine "Justice" (lat. "IUSTITIA") was founded in June 2021 on the initiative of the Minister of Justice, and in September 2021, the first issue of the magazine was published. It is a quarterly, refereed and peer-reviewed publication. Its purpose is to promote the development of a particular fields of law and deepening of academic discussion on legal issues.

In addition to scientific articles, important interviews are published in Iustitia; Georgian language translations of legal works recognized as classics; Articles about individuals who have made special contributions to the development of legal opinion.

The presentation of the website and the new issue of the magazine was attended by the members of the editorial board of the magazine, the scientific advisory council under the Ministry and other invited guests.

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From today, the interested public will be able to view scientific articles and interviews published in the magazine on the website of the magazine (http://iustitia.gov.ge).
Along with the presentation of the website, the newly published third issue of the magazine was also presented to the invited guests.

The Georgian-English magazine "Justice" (lat. "IUSTITIA") was founded in June 2021 on the initiative of the Minister of Justice, and in September 2021, the first issue of the magazine was published. It is a quarterly, refereed and peer-reviewed publication. Its purpose is to promote the development of a particular fields of law and deepening of academic discussion on legal issues.

In addition to scientific articles, important interviews are published in Iustitia; Georgian language translations of legal works recognized as classics; Articles about individuals who have made special contributions to the development of legal opinion.

The presentation of the website and the new issue of the magazine was attended by the members of the editorial board of the magazine, the scientific advisory council under the Ministry and other invited guests.

Kemlin Furley highlighted the success achieved by Georgia in the field of statelessness, which brings the country's practice even closer to international standards.

Chairperson of the Agency, Ketevan Betlemidze, introduced in detail to the attending public the measures and future plans to reduce and prevent statelessness, as well as the activities carried out within the framework of the ongoing Door-to-door campaign in cooperation with UNHCR and their results.

The event was attended by representatives of the government administration, state agencies, the Parliament of Georgia, the Office of the Public Defender, and international and local organizations.

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The goal of the joint event of the State Services Development Agency of the Ministry of Justice of Georgia and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) was to discuss the progress achieved by Georgia in the field of statelessness and the results of ongoing campaigns in cooperation with UNHCR, which serve to identify and register stateless persons.

The event was opened by the First Deputy Minister of Justice of Georgia, Tamar Tkeshelashvili, and Representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Georgia, Kemlin Furley.

"It is gratifying that the measures implemented by Georgia in the field of statelessness are positively evaluated both within the country and on the international arena, and among European countries, Georgia occupies a leading position in this regard. It is important that over the last ten years, Georgia maintains a sharp decrease in the number of stateless persons, which ultimately ensures the documentation of all such persons in order to fully realize their rights", noted Tamar Tkeshelashvili and thanked UNHCR and the agency team for fruitful cooperation and achieved results.

Kemlin Furley highlighted the success achieved by Georgia in the field of statelessness, which brings the country's practice even closer to international standards.

Chairperson of the Agency, Ketevan Betlemidze, introduced in detail to the attending public the measures and future plans to reduce and prevent statelessness, as well as the activities carried out within the framework of the ongoing Door-to-door campaign in cooperation with UNHCR and their results.

The event was attended by representatives of the government administration, state agencies, the Parliament of Georgia, the Office of the Public Defender, and international and local organizations.

The Ministry of Justice will finance the 17 best projects revealed within the grant program with a total budget of 335,000 GEL. The corresponding agreements with the winning organizations and individuals were signed today.

The purpose of the competition is to strengthen the priority directions of the Ministry of Justice and to increase the participation and involvement of civil society throughout the system.

On October 10, the Ministry of Justice announced the grant program aimed at protecting and strengthening human rights, introducing innovative services and strengthening legal security. Within the framework of the competition, a total of 47 project applications were submitted. Deputy Minister of Justice, Tornike Cheishvili and Erekle Gvinianidze attended the event.

The conference was attended by members of the executive power; Representatives of the National Agency for Crime Prevention and Enforcement of Non-custodial Sentences and Probation, Special Penitentiary Service, Council of Europe Office in Georgia and invited guests.

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The conference was opened today in order to promote the professional development of psychologists and social workers involved in the process of rehabilitation and re-socialization of persons in conflict with the law.

During two days, participants of the event will discuss case management by psychologists and social workers, share experiences and discuss specific ways of multi-sectoral cooperation that will make penitentiary and crime prevention systems more effective.

Deputy Minister of Justice, Buba Lomuashvili and Head of the Council of Europe Office in Georgia, Natalia Vutova addressed the participants of the conference with a welcome speech.

It was noted at the conference that the further development of probation and penitentiary systems in accordance with the best European and international standards is a strategic priority of the Ministry of Justice of Georgia and it significantly depends on the professional activities of social workers and psychologists; Participants evaluated the progress made in the systems over the last 10 years.

The event was organized by the Ministry of Justice, the National Agency for the Execution of Non-custodial Sentences and Probation and the Office of the Council of Europe within the framework of the project - "Improving health care provision in the penitentiary system of Georgia".

The conference was attended by members of the executive power; Representatives of the National Agency for Crime Prevention and Enforcement of Non-custodial Sentences and Probation, Special Penitentiary Service, Council of Europe Office in Georgia and invited guests.