Inhuman and degrading treatment of individuals in prisons is a common practice in Georgia – Giga Lemonjava

Speaking outside the Special Penitentiary Service—where a solidarity rally was held by the family and supporters of convicted prisoner Giorgi Davitadze—Giga Lemonjava, a leader of the "Coalition for Change," stated that violence against individuals is unacceptable to him, as is the "propaganda campaign" currently being waged against Davitadze and his family. I have come here as a Georgian citizen who finds the suffering and torture of individuals, violence against people, and the unbridled propaganda campaign currently waged by the so-called government against Giorgi Davitadze and his family to be unacceptable. This convinces me that what the prisoner says is the absolute truth.

Georgia is a country where people are tortured; there are countless instances of this. This regime rests on the torture of and violence against people because it has no other way to retain power—save for violence against the population.

In Georgia, the inhumane and degrading treatment of individuals in prison is a practice that "Georgian Dream" carries out against prisoners. "It is simply that very few people dare to speak about this openly," said Lemonjava.

According to him, the violence perpetrated by the authorities against individuals poses a threat not only to politically active persons but to every single citizen of Georgia.

"The continued de facto rule of this regime is dangerous not only for those who politically oppose it but for every citizen of Georgia, because no one is safe from the risk of being subjected to degrading treatment—whether in a police station or in prison," stated Giga Lemonjava.

Family members, friends, and supporters of Giorgi Davitadze held a protest rally outside the Special Penitentiary Service.

The protesters condemned the alleged torture and mistreatment of a prisoner within the penitentiary system.

Their demands include the resignation of the head of Rustavi Penitentiary Establishment No. 6 and the full, uninterrupted public release of the video footage documenting the incident. According to family members, they will not stop protesting until their demands are met with an appropriate response.