The News in Brief
Thursday, August 7
Court of Appeal rejects appeal concerning Mikheil Saakashvili’s case
The Court of Appeal has rejected the appeal concerning the case of Mikheil Saakashvili, Zurab Adeishvili and Davit Kezerashvili as inadmissible, the press service of the Court of Appeal told InterPressNews.
According to them, the Court of Appeal upheld the first instance decision.
Mikheil Saakashvili, Zurab Adeishvili and Davit Kezerashvili were sentenced to imprisonment by Tbilisi City Court on 2 August.
Mikheil Saakashvili, Davit Kezerashvili and Zurab Adeishvili are not in Georgia at present. They were accused of the crime considered by the 333rd article of the Criminal Code, which implies abuse of power.
The former mayor of Tbilisi Gigi Ugulava and the former Interior Minister Vano Merabishvili are also accused. Merabishvili and Ugulava were sentenced to imprisonment because of a different criminal case. The Prosecutor’s Office has not addressed the court to sentence Ugulava and Merabishvili to imprisonment for invasion of Imedi TV and dispersing the 7 November rally. (IPN)
Patriarch gives white horse to Prime Minister Gharibashvili
Ilia II, Archbishop of Mtskheta and Tbilisi, Metropolitan of Bichvinta and Tskhum-Abkhazia, has gifted a white horse to Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Gharibashvili.
According to the PM’s press office, on August 5, Irakli Gharibashvili arrived in the village of Sno, Kazbegi. The Prime Minister along with the Patriarch visited Checkpoint Larsi and the newly opened church in the Dariali gorge. (frontnews)
Greek Court to consider Akhalaia`s extradition
The Greek Court starts to discuss the issue of extradition of Data Akhalaia to the Georgian side - the former chief of the Constitutional Security Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia, who was detained by the Greek police in April 2014, when he was travelling to Italy with forged ID.
Akhalaia was bailed out against EURO 100,000, but his case is still under discussion, as he is wanted by Georgian prosecutor`s office for various crimes, including the high-profile case of the so-called Navtlughi special operation and the murder of Sandro Girgvliani - one of the most scandalous criminal cases in the recent history of Georgia. (Rustavi2)
PM: Prosecuting Saakashvili Won’t Affect EU Integration
PM Irakli Garibashvili said that pursuing criminal investigation against ex-president Mikheil Saakashvili will have “no effect whatsoever” on Georgia’s European integration process and added that the former president “will not overweigh our relationship with any country.”
“We should wait for findings of the investigation and let the court decide,” Garibashvili told journalists on August 4, adding that the authorities would provide “maximum of transparency.”
Asked if concerns expressed by Georgia’s Western partners over bringing criminal charges against Saakashvili would affect country’s European integration, Garibashvili responded: “It will have no effect whatsoever.”
“I want to calm everyone down. We have started building of genuine democracy; we are a sovereign state and we want to build sovereign, democratic state – modern, developed European state,” he said.
“Speculation that as if the former president is more important than the state is utterly absurd,” he said. “We are the democratic state, we are building a genuine democracy and the former president, who is charged with grave crimes, will not overweigh our relations with any country.”
“Statements that independent prosecutor’s office should not investigate crimes committed in the past and possibly committed by former high-ranking officials, are directly in conflict with the main democratic values – principle of rule of law,” PM Garibashvili said.
“If we declare that we want to build modern democratic institutions, where everyone is equal before the law and where principle of rule of law is observed, then no one should be standing above the law; it’s our main goal to put an end to impunity once and for all in our country,” he said. (Civil.ge)
Constitutional court to consider Gelbakhiani`s complaint
The Constitutional Court of Georgia is starting to consider the complaint submitted by Valeri Gelbakhiani - a politician and the ally of the late tycoon Badri Patarkatsishvili, who thinks that his constitutional rights and some articles of the European Convention seven years ago, when the prosecutor`s office brought charges against him and Patarkatsishvili. They were accused of coup attempt in 2007.
Gelbakhiani appealed to the Constitutional Court in 2013, when the prosecutor`s office refused to terminate the investigation on this case and sent the case for considering to the Tbilisi City Court.
`It happened so that the old law was enforced against me and the newly adopted one was ignored. I believe that my constitutional rights were infringed. Now I am demanding to annul the norm of the previous law, which is still in force and imposes such discriminating terms, or else the Constitutional Court should make authentic definition on the proper use of the new law,` Valeri Gelbakhiani said. (Rustavi2)
Georgia holds week of memory for servicemen killed in August 2008
Georgia started a week of memory for servicemen killed in August 2008 and during the peacekeeping mission in Afghanistan.
"Prime Time" media holding is an organizer of the week of memory.
The event was opened by a photo exhibition organized by the "Prime Time" representatives and the International Fund of Journalists "Golden Pen". Several events were planned to be held within the week of memory.
About 200 Georgian servicemen were killed during the events of August 2008.
Large scale military action was launched between Georgia and Russia in South Ossetia on August 8, 2008. Later, Russian troops occupied Tskhinvali and expelled the Georgian military. Russia recognized the independence of South Ossetia and Abkhazia in late August. In response, Tbilisi suspended diplomatic relations with Moscow and called the two unrecognized republics of Abkhazia and South Ossetia occupied territories. (trend.az)
The Court of Appeal has rejected the appeal concerning the case of Mikheil Saakashvili, Zurab Adeishvili and Davit Kezerashvili as inadmissible, the press service of the Court of Appeal told InterPressNews.
According to them, the Court of Appeal upheld the first instance decision.
Mikheil Saakashvili, Zurab Adeishvili and Davit Kezerashvili were sentenced to imprisonment by Tbilisi City Court on 2 August.
Mikheil Saakashvili, Davit Kezerashvili and Zurab Adeishvili are not in Georgia at present. They were accused of the crime considered by the 333rd article of the Criminal Code, which implies abuse of power.
The former mayor of Tbilisi Gigi Ugulava and the former Interior Minister Vano Merabishvili are also accused. Merabishvili and Ugulava were sentenced to imprisonment because of a different criminal case. The Prosecutor’s Office has not addressed the court to sentence Ugulava and Merabishvili to imprisonment for invasion of Imedi TV and dispersing the 7 November rally. (IPN)
Patriarch gives white horse to Prime Minister Gharibashvili
Ilia II, Archbishop of Mtskheta and Tbilisi, Metropolitan of Bichvinta and Tskhum-Abkhazia, has gifted a white horse to Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Gharibashvili.
According to the PM’s press office, on August 5, Irakli Gharibashvili arrived in the village of Sno, Kazbegi. The Prime Minister along with the Patriarch visited Checkpoint Larsi and the newly opened church in the Dariali gorge. (frontnews)
Greek Court to consider Akhalaia`s extradition
The Greek Court starts to discuss the issue of extradition of Data Akhalaia to the Georgian side - the former chief of the Constitutional Security Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia, who was detained by the Greek police in April 2014, when he was travelling to Italy with forged ID.
Akhalaia was bailed out against EURO 100,000, but his case is still under discussion, as he is wanted by Georgian prosecutor`s office for various crimes, including the high-profile case of the so-called Navtlughi special operation and the murder of Sandro Girgvliani - one of the most scandalous criminal cases in the recent history of Georgia. (Rustavi2)
PM: Prosecuting Saakashvili Won’t Affect EU Integration
PM Irakli Garibashvili said that pursuing criminal investigation against ex-president Mikheil Saakashvili will have “no effect whatsoever” on Georgia’s European integration process and added that the former president “will not overweigh our relationship with any country.”
“We should wait for findings of the investigation and let the court decide,” Garibashvili told journalists on August 4, adding that the authorities would provide “maximum of transparency.”
Asked if concerns expressed by Georgia’s Western partners over bringing criminal charges against Saakashvili would affect country’s European integration, Garibashvili responded: “It will have no effect whatsoever.”
“I want to calm everyone down. We have started building of genuine democracy; we are a sovereign state and we want to build sovereign, democratic state – modern, developed European state,” he said.
“Speculation that as if the former president is more important than the state is utterly absurd,” he said. “We are the democratic state, we are building a genuine democracy and the former president, who is charged with grave crimes, will not overweigh our relations with any country.”
“Statements that independent prosecutor’s office should not investigate crimes committed in the past and possibly committed by former high-ranking officials, are directly in conflict with the main democratic values – principle of rule of law,” PM Garibashvili said.
“If we declare that we want to build modern democratic institutions, where everyone is equal before the law and where principle of rule of law is observed, then no one should be standing above the law; it’s our main goal to put an end to impunity once and for all in our country,” he said. (Civil.ge)
Constitutional court to consider Gelbakhiani`s complaint
The Constitutional Court of Georgia is starting to consider the complaint submitted by Valeri Gelbakhiani - a politician and the ally of the late tycoon Badri Patarkatsishvili, who thinks that his constitutional rights and some articles of the European Convention seven years ago, when the prosecutor`s office brought charges against him and Patarkatsishvili. They were accused of coup attempt in 2007.
Gelbakhiani appealed to the Constitutional Court in 2013, when the prosecutor`s office refused to terminate the investigation on this case and sent the case for considering to the Tbilisi City Court.
`It happened so that the old law was enforced against me and the newly adopted one was ignored. I believe that my constitutional rights were infringed. Now I am demanding to annul the norm of the previous law, which is still in force and imposes such discriminating terms, or else the Constitutional Court should make authentic definition on the proper use of the new law,` Valeri Gelbakhiani said. (Rustavi2)
Georgia holds week of memory for servicemen killed in August 2008
Georgia started a week of memory for servicemen killed in August 2008 and during the peacekeeping mission in Afghanistan.
"Prime Time" media holding is an organizer of the week of memory.
The event was opened by a photo exhibition organized by the "Prime Time" representatives and the International Fund of Journalists "Golden Pen". Several events were planned to be held within the week of memory.
About 200 Georgian servicemen were killed during the events of August 2008.
Large scale military action was launched between Georgia and Russia in South Ossetia on August 8, 2008. Later, Russian troops occupied Tskhinvali and expelled the Georgian military. Russia recognized the independence of South Ossetia and Abkhazia in late August. In response, Tbilisi suspended diplomatic relations with Moscow and called the two unrecognized republics of Abkhazia and South Ossetia occupied territories. (trend.az)