Georgian President on Saakashvili: "I don't want him to die in prison"

Salome Zurabishvili on fate of Saakashvili

The current president of Georgia, Salome Zurabishvili, commented on the health of former president of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili, whom she fears may die in prison.

When asked by a BBC journalist why Zurabishvili did not pardon the third president, who has been in prison for more than a year, the president replied:

“This is not in my power for one simple reason — the trial is not over yet, it is still being judged. This is the legislation of Georgia: pardon can only happen when everything is over,” Zurabishvili said.

She also believes pardoning the former president after the end of the trial could exacerbate polarization in society.

“There is not a single family in Georgia that has not experienced what an autocratic regime is. So I do not want to become an instrument of further polarization. But on the other hand, I am the head of state and I do not want the former president to die in prison or suffer irreparable damage, so I am following the medical analysis of his condition very carefully. I expected that today there would be a new conclusion from the international medical group, but it has not yet been released,” Zurabishvili said.

Zurabishvili has repeatedly pointed out the need to send Saakashvili abroad for a medical examination, but this requires a court decision.

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Mikheil Saakashvili has been in prison for over a year. He was arrested after secretly returning to Georgia on October 1, 2021.

Saakashvili was in the 12th penal colony Rustavi. He considers himself a political prisoner and has gone on hunger strike twice in protest. The first hunger strike lasted 51 days.

Then his health deteriorated so much that he required urgent treatment. First he was transferred to the Gldani prison hospital, then to the Gori military hospital, and finally to a Vivamed clinic where he is still being treated.

There was also a decision by the Strasbourg Court of Human Rights on November 10, which called on Saakashvili to end his hunger strike and instructed the state to ensure the prisoner’s safety and adequate treatment.

According to an independent medical consultation initiated by the Ombudsman of Georgia, Saakashvili’s health deteriorated significantly this spring. The family asked for him to be transferred abroad for treatment.

US Ambassador to Georgia Kelly Degnan urged the Georgian government to take the recommendations of the Ombudsman on Saakashvili’s health with the utmost seriousness.

Salome Zurabishvili on fate of Saakashvili