President pardons 168 prisoners

President of Georgia Giorgi Margvelashvili has pardoned 168  prisoners; 114 of them will be released from prison today, while the remaining 54 will have their prison terms shortened.

Head of the President’s Pardon Commission Zviad Koridze announced this morning that six of the 168 pardoned  inmates were women. 

The President is only authorised person to pardon inmates in Georgia but he is not the only person involved in the decision on who is pardoned. 

The President’s Pardon Commission is composed of ten people including Koridze. Commission members are mainly lawyers from the civil sector, public figures, the Public Defender and a spiritual representative from Georgia’s Patriarchate. 

The group are tasked to discuss the cases sent to the Commission by certain inmates or their families and write down a list of prisoners they believe who deserve to be pardoned. 

The President makes final decision whether to pardon the inmates or not.