Parliament’s Temporary Investigative Commission exposes systemic torture in prisons under former UNM Gov’t

Thea Tsulukiani, the Vice Speaker of the Georgian Parliament and Chair of the Parliament’s Temporary Investigative Commission examining crimes committed by the former United National Movement Government between 2003 and 2012, on Tuesday revealed findings of widespread torture and inhuman treatment of prisoners under the former United National Movement regime.

Presenting the Commission’s report, Tsulukiani detailed a deliberate and systematic pattern of abuse within the penitentiary system aimed at the “disguised and deliberate destruction of prisoners”.

“Torture and inhuman treatment of detained persons and prisoners refer to actions within the systems of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the penitentiary system, which were used individually or in combination with procedural mechanisms to achieve various goals. These included securing desired outcomes in specific criminal cases, illegally seizing property, political retribution, revenge, and other purposes”, Tsulukiani said.

The Commission uncovered egregious practices, including the intentional placement of healthy prisoners in cells with those suffering from contagious diseases like tuberculosis, which saw up to 2,000 new cases annually in prisons.

“A disguised and deliberate destruction of prisoners in custody was taking place. This is evidenced, on one hand, by the fact that up to 2,000 new cases of tuberculosis were recorded annually in prisons, and healthy prisoners were placed in the same cells as those with contagious diseases. This established practice of cohabitation was sometimes intentionally used to suppress or exact revenge on healthy prisoners”, she noted.

“On the other hand, the artificial obstruction of treatment for Hepatitis C, and even the prohibition of screening for this disease to conceal its widespread prevalence in prisons, became a common practice”, Tsulukiani continued.

Tsulukiani criticised the prosecution’s role, stating that “the prosecution, as the leading law enforcement body, not only failed to fulfil its legal obligations and conduct thorough and objective investigations into cases of torture and inhuman treatment but was directly involved in violating the human rights of prisoners”.

She highlighted a “syndrome of impunity” and high-level political support as key drivers of the systemic violence within law enforcement structures.