Georgian Deputy Justice Minister: no instances of ill-treatment in Georgian prisons, CPT report confirms

Beka Dzamashvili, the Deputy Minister of Justice of Georgia, on Wednesday announced that the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) has found zero instances of ill-treatment within Georgia's penitentiary system.

In his remarks with Imedi TV, Dzamashvili highlighted this as a “crucial result” that reflects a total transformation of the state's approach toward human rights in closed institutions.

“Of course, to make a general overall assessment, we must first mention what the main mandate and purpose of the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture is. When they visit a particular country, they primarily assess how human rights are protected in closed institutions, especially in penitentiary facilities. The dynamics over the years with regard to Georgia are very clear”, he said.

The key takeaway from the latest report, he said, was that the CPT explicitly states there were no recorded cases of ill-treatment in the country’s penitentiary institutions.

“If we take the main conclusion from the report published today, the CPT states that there are no recorded cases of ill-treatment in Georgia. This is an extremely important result and conclusion. It is noteworthy to look at the dynamics over the years, because it was precisely this committee that, before 2012, characterised Georgia’s penitentiary system as a place where torture was systemic and systematic. In other words, it was characteristic of the entire system and was not limited to isolated cases. Rather, it referred to a standard that was systematically and massively widespread”, he noted.

The Deputy Minister further pointed out that similar positive conclusions had been reflected in CPT reports issued in previous years, indicating consistency in the committee’s evaluations and suggesting that the reforms have produced lasting results.

“Today, the CPT speaks very freely and writes in its conclusion - and this is not only the conclusion published this year; a similar assessment was made two years ago and several years before that. Essentially, this reflects the entire penitentiary system and the state’s overall approach towards prisoners, namely that torture in Georgia has been eliminated once and for all. On the contrary, Georgia’s penitentiary system is now associated with the protection of human rights”, Dzamashvili concluded.