Gov’t responds to EPP President’s appeal
By Gvantsa Gabekhadze
Thursday, January 26
The Georgian Dream Government of Georgia has responded to the appeal of the President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Joseph Daul, to release ‘political prisoners’, after Daul met ex-Tbilisi Mayor Gigi Ugulava, who had recently been released from prison.
The Georgian Government administration states the Prime Minister and the Government respect the opinions of their European colleagues and take them very seriously, “but justice is administered by the court and not by the government or the Prime Minister in a modern democratic system”.
"Georgia is a European, EU associated country, which is successfully implementing the European standards. Georgia’s exceptional progress since 2012 and its democratic reforms have been recognized by the European Union, other partners and international organizations. Georgia managed to become a country where human freedom is a major value,” the Prime Minister’s press office stated.
The statement stressed that in a democratic system, perpetrators are punished for their crimes, including violent offenses that lead to loss of life, torture, or degrading treatment.
“The government cannot interfere with the court’s action to release perpetrators from prison solely because of their political affiliation, and cannot serve a culture of impunity, which is unacceptable in a democratic society,” the Administration stated.
The United National Movement meanwhile highlighted that all of its former top officials who are now in prison are indeed political prisoners.
