Minister: "Georgia will step up fight against domestic violence"

Georgia’s Minister of Internal Affairs Aleksandre Tchikaidze is pledging the country will intensify its efforts to stop domestic violence in Georgia.

Tchikaidze addressed the Georgian public today and said solving the problem of domestic violence would remain his Ministry’s top priority in 2015 and 2016.

"We will do everything to prevent such incidences happening but if they do still happen, offenders will be punished to the fullest extent of the law,” the Minister said.

Last year about 25 women were killed in domestic violence-related crimes, and the number of instances of violence that did not result in death was much higher, official statistics showed.

In his address, Tchikaidze thanked all law enforcers for what they had done during the past two years and encouraged them to further intensify their fight against domestic violence.

He also named several positive trends his Ministry had achieved in the past two years, including:

• Creating an online updating map where society can see each case of domestic violence and how police reacted to it;
• Initiating a package of legislative changes which will see offenders strictly punished;
• Training police officers to enable them to better handle cases of domestic violence;
• Increasing the numbers of criminal prosecutions and restraining orders issued to offenders;
• Holding informative meetings and organising public discussions to raise awareness of domestic violence;
• Establishing a hotline where victims or witnesses can report domestic violence cases; and
• Starting working on Georgia's National Strategy against domestic violence.

Despite all of the Ministry's recent efforts, about two dozen women were killed in domestic violence-related crimes in 2014. The number of violence cases that did not result in death was much higher.

Tchikaidze said despite the efforts made last year, he realised he would need to do more this year and step up the fight to further reduce the number of instances of domestic violence in Georgia.