Patriarch urges end to prison hunger strike

Half of the female prisoners who have been hunger strike for nearly two weeks ended their protest at the behest of the country’s spiritual leader.

Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia Ilia II sent a letter two days ago urging the women to end their hunger strike, according to the Patriarchate’s spokesman, Davit Sharashenidze.

“They listened to the Patriarch’s words and abandoned the hunger strike,” said Nana Kakabadze of the NGO Former Political Prisoners for Human Rights, the woman single-handedly responsible for publicizing the protest. “We’ll have consultations with the rest and perhaps all of them will stop.”

A spokeswoman for the prison department said 44 women still on hunger strike.

The Patriarchate’s spokesman said they also sent a letter to the Justice Ministry, and Kakabadze said the justice minister offered to speak with the prisoners once they called off their hunger strike.

But spokeswoman for the Justice Ministry denied any offer was made, and said their ministry never received a letter from the Patriarchate.

“We haven’t received any letter like that. Why should the Patriarchate send us a letter when [we’re not responsible for] the issue?” said the spokeswoman.

She said the hunger strikers’ demands for amnesty and reviews of individual cases are the burden of the president’s administration and other organizations outside the Justice Ministry.

“Generally we work with the Patriarchate and have close relations, but in this case we aren’t responsible for the issue.”

A spokeswoman for the Justice Ministry’s prison department, Salome Makharadze, said the department would provide medical treatment for the hunger strikers, but also is not responsible for reviewing individual cases.

The protest began June 7 with prisoners demanding case reviews and better living conditions. Some claim to be political prisoners jailed after speaking out against government moves to confiscate their property.

Makharadze said complaints of poor conditions “make no sense” as the jail meets international standards, and said there was no truth in claims that prison management threatened retaliation against the hunger strikers.