Enactment of the legal amendments on questioning postponed

Amendments to the Criminal Code which outline to set the rule of questioning a witness only in the court are postponed with two years until 31 December, 2015. The parliament approved postponing the amendments with majority of votes.  

However the MP from the United National Movement Pavle Kublashvili said the decision for postponement was taken not at the parliament, but somewhere else. He is sure that the decision does not mean the rule of questioning a witness only at the court will never enacted.

"How can I explain to MPs Tina Khidasheli or Eka Beselia that questioning a witness only at the court is a better and more efficient measure, they know this better than me.  If this rule was not enacted yet, itwas a mistake and possibly, I also made a contribution to this.   Lets think about that we are continuing the way which was a bad way used by us and no need to keep implicitly talks about this, Kublashvili said.  

He also mentioned that MPs Vakhtang Kmaladze and Shalva Shavgulidze, as well as Deputy Minister of Justice, Alexandre Baramidze have had a firm position towards the rule of questioning a witness at the court.

The NGOs who were present at the parliament yesterday also showed their negative approach towards the decision while attending the plenary session.  

While the Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs, Levan Izoria was explaining the reasons for amendments' postponement, the NGO representatives and among them representatives of Transparency International Georgia have placed posters in the parliaments lounge.  

"Human Rights cannot wait for two years, "Say no to postponement, "Defend the right to defense stated the posters which were met with applause by the Parliamentary minority.  

However, the parliament guards removed the posters and asked the NGO representatives to leave the lounge.

MP from Georgian Dream coalition, Manana Kobakhidze explained later that one needs a special permission to place the posters inside the parliaments sitting room.

"I have to tell the representatives of NGOs that whenever they want to place such kind of posters inside the parliamentary building they should receive a required pre-authorization. Parliament regulations do not indicate that you are allowed to defiantly hang some posers here," Kobakhidze addressed the NGO representatives.

Georgias new criminal procedure code came into force in October 2010 but the codes Article 332 envisaged keeping old rule of witness questioning until October 2012. The deadline has been extended for several of times since then while UNM was in power and now again, under the rule of Georgian Dream coalition.

Currently, the old rule in the new criminl code envisages that if necessary, a witness can be compelled to appear before law enforcement agencies or prosecution and answer their questions before the case goes to the court. Moreover, if a witness summoned by the prosecution or law enforcement agencies refuses to appear before them they can apply a coercive measure through the courts order and forcefully question the witness.

This practice has been criticized by human rights organizations that it creates possibility for the prosecution to put the pressure on witness in order to receive a favorable statement.