Opposition politicians call on government to act over prison strike

Opposition politicians called on the government to accede to the demands of over 100 women prisoners on hunger strike at a Tbilisi jail at a press briefing outside the prison yesterday.

Nino Kalandadze, who heads the NGO Former Political Prisoners for Human Rights, which has been largely responsible for publicizing the hunger strike over the past few days, says the strikers are protesting poor prison conditions and that many want a review of their cases.

“Of course we can’t dig an underground tunnel for them to escape from the prison, but we’ll do our utmost to help them,” Koba Davitashvili, a leading member of the eight-party United Opposition coalition, told the Messenger yesterday.

He suggested that many of the prisoners were there for political reasons, saying the politicians aim to increase media coverage of the protest and “seek other ways to defend these people, whose only fault is they didn’t vote for the [ruling party] in exchange for their freedom.”

Eka Beselia, also of the coalition, called on the government, the court system and the Prosecutor General’s Office to meet the prisoners’ demands.

“The prisons are overcrowded and half of them are innocent people. Those people are absolutely right to make these demands,” she told the Messenger.

Earlier this week a prison department spokeswoman said the prisoners’ demands make “no sense,” and that “each of them has a different case which needs its own investigation.”

Yesterday Human Rights Ombudsman Sozar Subari said the prisoners are threatening to refuse water as well food from tomorrow onwards. He also said that while he considers their demands fair, it is unrealistic they will be met.

Kakabadze, the NGO head, said relatives of the striking inmates have held demonstrations outside local courthouses in Batumi and Kutaisi.