Public Defender of Georgia calls for immediate transfer of ex-president Saakashvili to another hospital

Public Defender calls for immediate transfer of Saakashvili to another hospital

The Public Defender of Georgia calls on the Minister of Justice and the Penitentiary Service to immediately transfer the former President of Georgia, Mikheil Saakashvili, to an alternative medical facility.

The Ombudsman, who visited Mikheil Saakashvili on November 8 at the 18th institution in Gldani, reiterates that

The 18th medical institution does not comply with the recommendations of the council, and the placement of Mikhail Saakashvili in this institution clearly violates the state’s duty to respect human dignity.

What the Public Defender says about the circumstances of Saakashvili’s transfer to Gldani:

● Mikheil Saakashvili did not know that he was being taken to the 18th institution in Gldani. In Rustavi he was told that by the decision of the council he would be transferred to a civilian clinic, to which he agreed.

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● Saakashvili told the Public Defender that, despite his refusal, he was forcibly transferred to institution No. 18. The Office of the Public Defender of Georgia immediately reported this to the State Inspectorate in order to start an investigation.

● The Public Defender points out that Mikheil Saakashvili is placed in an environment that grossly violates human rights. In particular, from the 8th prison, which is located in the same yard as the 18th prison hospital, the inmates swear and threaten Saakashvili. These screams also reach Saakashvili’s ward, and, according to the Public Defender, “this is obvious psychological pressure”.

● The Public Defender notes that, most likely, such screams will also be heard when visitors come to Saakashvili – his lawyers, family members.

● The Public Defender notes that on the day of Saakashvili’s arrival, a computed tomography machine was brought to the institution at 18. However, this device has not yet been installed, and its installation is “planned in the near future”. However, despite the request of the council, the institution does not have a catheterization laboratory and still does not have a magnetic resonance imaging apparatus.

● This year, the Office of the Public Defender checked the documents on the admission of prisoners to the 18th institution (from January 20 to the present) and found that during this period no other prisoners from the 12th institution, except Mikhail Saakashvili, were admitted to this institution.

• Why is Gldani Prison Hospital unsafe?

  

  The eighth prison is an ordinary prison, where criminal authorities are serving their sentences. It is dangerous to put the former president in a “normal” prison, the Public Defender’s office said.

  In the 12th prison in Rustavi, where Saakashvili was held, special category of prisoners are held – those whose stay in ordinary prisons, with ordinary convicts and criminal authorities is unsafe.

  For example, in Rustavi prison there are former police officers, politicians, officials or people who fought criminals and arrested them while free were are held.

● The ombudsman said in a statement that Saakashvili continues to starve, does not receive adequate medicines, minerals and vitamins for fasting, and refuses medical assistance.

On November 8, the Ministry of Justice announced that the former Georgian president, who had been on a hunger strike since the day of his arrest, was transferred without warning from Rustavi’s 12th facility to Gldani prion hospital 18 without the consent of family members and lawyers.