A 26-year-old Hungarian journalist and activist, Laszlo Robert Mezesi, was detained in Tbilisi near the State University metro station.
Mezesi’s lawyer, Tornike Janelidze, told Radio Liberty that he was detained by officers of the Interior Ministry’s Migration Department at around 18:30 on August 5. The lawyer did not provide further details.
The Interior Ministry said Hungarian journalist Laszlo Robert Mezesi is staying in Georgia without legal grounds and has violated the permitted period of stay in the country.
“The individual is staying in Georgia without legal grounds and has exceeded the permitted period of stay. Based on this, the detention procedure is underway under Article 64, paragraph 2, subparagraph ‘b’ of the Law on the Legal Status of Aliens and Stateless Persons,” the ministry said.
Article 64 of the law concerns the grounds for detaining a foreign national and placing them in a temporary accommodation center for the purpose of removal from Georgia. Under the law, a foreign citizen may be detained and transferred to a temporary detention facility or temporary accommodation center if there is a risk of absconding.
The law states that a detained foreign national must be presented to a court within 48 hours to decide on placement in a temporary accommodation center. A foreign citizen may be held at the center for up to three months, while the Interior Ministry can extend the period for a maximum of nine months.
