Georgia releases Otkhozoria-Tatunashvili sanctions list

The names of 33 people have been included on a list compiled by the Georgian government called the ‘Otkhozoria-Tatunashvili List’.

This was announced today by the new prime minister of Georgia, Mamuka Bakhtadze.

The 33 individuals allegedly committed various crimes against Georgian citizens in the occupied territories from 1991 to the present day.

“This is not a complete and final list, as law enforcement agencies continue to conduct investigations and this list may expand,” said Bakhtadze at a government administration briefing. However, he did not mention who was on the list.

 What is the Otkhozoria-Tatunashvili List and what sanctions does it imply? 

The Parliament of Georgia decided to create a document in March 2018 similar to the well-known Magnitsky List. Its goal is to protect the citizens of Georgia in the occupied territories. Since the Georgian authorities have no power to protect their citizens in the occupied territories, they believe that the adoption of such a ‘black list’ could be a way out of this situation.

The list is symbolically named after Georgian citizens Archil Tatunashvili and Gigi Otkhozoria who were killed in South Ossetia and at the crossing point into Abkhazia. The alleged killers of Tatunashvili and Otkhozoria are not the only ones on the list. According to the resolution, the list will include all suspects in murders, abductions, organised torture, inhumane treatment of Georgian citizens in the occupied territories and those covering up said crimes.

Archil Tatunashvili died on 23 February in the security committee (KGB) building of South Ossetia under unclear circumstances. Giga Otkhozoria was shot by an Abkhaz border guard on the administrative border of Georgia and Abkhazia.

According to Mamuka Bakhtadze, the government has already considered all measures to be taken against the individuals included on the list on an international level.

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