Georgian diplomats appeal to international community to save ex-president Saakashvili's life
By Liza Mchedlidze
Wednesday, December 7, 2022
Georgian diplomats appealed to the European Union, NATO, the Council of Europe, the OSCE, and their parliamentary bodies to save Mikheil Saakashvili's life.
The letter reads that against the background of the rapid deterioration of ex-president Saakashvili's health, an independent group of American medical experts published the results of the conducted tests and research, which reveal serious violations of human rights against President Saakashvili, including torture and heavy metal poisoning.
"His condition is alarming. It is obvious that President Saakashvili was treated inappropriately and was tortured," said Doctor of Medicine, 1997 Nobel Prize laureate in medicine, Dr. James E Cobb.
"His life is in imminent danger if he is not transferred to a Western medical facility where he will receive life-sustaining treatment," added Dr. Cobb.
After he was arrested in October 2021, President Saakashvili's physical and mental condition significantly deteriorated. Recent studies have confirmed that he now has prison-related psychological, neurological, orthopedic, and gastrointestinal ailments that are steadily worsening his condition.
In addition, a group of doctors found traces of arsenic and heavy metals, including mercury, in President Saakashvili's body. Therefore, experts strongly recommend that he be transferred immediately to a medical facility in the United States or Western Europe.
"President Saakashvili was given at least 14 different medical drugs, some of which are not authorized by the US Food and Drug Administration," said David E. Smith, US leading toxicologist.
"The deadly combination of these drugs caused brain dysfunction, among them, atrophy of white matter in the prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for the brain's controlling function, and increased risk of morbidity and mortality. Therefore, immediate detoxification from these drugs is necessary," added Dr. Smith.
On December 2, after the publication of the results of the analysis and research conducted by an independent group of American medical experts, the team of lawyers of President Saakashvili, including Massimo F. D'Angelo, the lawyer of the American law firm 'Akerman' appealed to the Georgian court with the request to postpone the imprisonment of the former president and to transfer him from Georgia to a foreign country immediately.
Obtaining the approval for President Saakashvili to undergo treatment abroad will be the first step, which will allow the former president to conduct research and treatment of Western standards, free from the fear of political interference. As established by the last resolution of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, Mikheil Saakashvili is a political prisoner of the current regime. He must be released. When Georgia is trying to gain candidate status in the European Union, especially at a time when the entire security of Europe is under threat, the current development of events is absolutely unacceptable.
We, the former Georgian diplomats, would like to draw the attention of the international community and call on the relevant governments, international organizations, and non-governmental organizations to react as strictly as possible to the current situation," the statement reads.
