The imprisonment of demonstrators in Georgia illustrates the authorities’ misuse of the justice system to stifle dissent, Amnesty International said in a statement.
Denis Krivosheev, Deputy Director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia at Amnesty International, condemned the sentencing of 20 demonstrators — including activist Saba Skhvitaridze and actor Andro Chichinadze — for their participation in anti-government protests over the past two days.
“The trials of Andro Chichinadze, Saba Skhvitaridze, and others reveal how Georgian authorities are weaponizing the courts to punish demonstrators and suppress dissenting voices,” the statement reads. “Protesters in Georgia have faced serious human rights violations, including torture, ill-treatment, arbitrary detentions, and unfair trials.”
Amnesty International stressed that these cases represent a systemic denial of justice for hundreds of demonstrators.
“Saba Skhvitaridze, sentenced to two years in prison after a flagrantly unfair trial, was also denied an effective investigation into allegations of torture and other ill-treatment. Georgian authorities must overturn these unjust convictions, ensure the release of Skhvitaridze, Chichinadze, and others, and guarantee them new, fair trials. All those detained solely for exercising their rights to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression must be released immediately,” the organization declared.
