President Zurabishvili suggests improving rules of pardoning inmates
President Salome Zurabishvili has issued a total of 97 pardons since December 17, 2018, her administration reported. Photo: President's press office
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Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili has made her first official comment on pardoning an individual who has been charged with murdering a police officer.
President Zurabishvili has recently pardoned 34 individuals including Ramaz Devadze, who has been sentenced to 12 years in prison on murder charges of a police officer Tarash Mukbaniani in Georgia’s Black Sea town of Batumi in 2014.
The decision, which Zurabishvili said, was made “sincerely”, under her own responsibility, has been widely criticised by members of opposition and ruling party.
Zurabishvili said yesterday that she is sorry that the act of pardoning, which is a ”human act” in its nature, has become the cause of misunderstanding between her and the rest of the society, instead of leading to “wide public consensus”.
To avoid such cases in future President suggested to accelerate the process of improving the rules of pardoning inmates and to use this right only in exceptional cases, thus to also decrease the possible risks.
President Zurabishvili also reiterated her full respect to the police as “one of the main pillars of the state” and stressed that the country's stability and security is based on “the devotion and dedication” of police officers.
The candidate for interior minister and current head of the State Security Service Vakhtang Gomelauri said it is unacceptable for him to pardon an individual who has been charged with murdering a police officer.
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili says that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has offered to create a joint strategy with Georgia on how to combat Russian occupation and help both countries become members of the EU.
President of Georgia Salome Zurabishvili opened the Business Leaders Forum in Paris, organized by MEDEF International, the leading network of French entrepreneurs, yesterday on August 28.
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili has pardoned 34 individuals, including one minor and eight women on the Day of the Virgin Mary today. As of today, President Zurabishvili has pardoned a total of 97 individuals since December 17, 2018.
Ruling Georgian Dream party members say that legal changes are needed to specify all the procedures and preconditions for the presidential pardon of inmates.
The statements come after two scandalous pardons by President Salome Zurabishvili, one when she pardoned a man who was sentenced for the murder of a police officer and another, which took place two weeks ago, when a man also convicted for murder was pardoned.
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili has declared a moratorium on pardoning prisoners until all rules and procedures are clarified. In doing so Zurabishvili is responding to recent turmoil surrounding two pardons of inmates convicted for intentional murder.
The Georgian Chief Prosecutor’s Office has launched an investigation looking into possible misuse of authority in the pardon cases of former convicts Ramaz Devadze, Aslan Bezhanidze, Zurab Nadiradze and ‘others.’ All of the three individuals, convicted for murder, have been pardoned by President Salome Zuravbishvili.
Ruling Georgian Dream party MP Giorgi Volski says that if necessary, Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili will be summoned for questioning per the ongoing investigation into pardon issues.