Time in Tbilisi: May 1, 2024 10:22
The first female president of Georgia Salome Zurabishvili has issued her first pardon decree, releasing three female inmates.
The president’s administration has reported that one of the women is pregnant, another has an underage child and the third is a mother of three children.
Zurabishvili says that she may change several members of the Pardon Commission in the coming days.
The President’s Pardon Commission is composed of 11 individuals, mainly lawyers from the civil sector, public figures, the Public Defender and a spiritual representative from Georgia’s Patriarchate.
The group must discuss all cases sent to the Pardon Commission by inmates or their families and decide which prisoners they believe deserve to be pardoned. The list then is sent to the president.
Georgian President Giorgi Margvelashvili, whose presidential term expires this week, has pardoned 57 convicts, head of the President’s Pardon Commission Zviad Koridze stated today.
Georgian President Giorgi Margvelashvili pardoned 831 prisoners in 2017. Out of the pardoned people 539 were released immediately, while the remaining 291 saw their sentence terms commuted.
More than 150 inmates will spend the hot days of August, and the rest of their lives, with their families and loved one following their release from prison after the President’s pardon today.
Georgia’s President Giorgi Margvelashvili has pardoned 170 inmates. 120 out of the pardoned will be released today, while the remaining 50 will have their prison terms commuted.
Head of the President’s Pardon Commission Zviad Koridze has left the post and several members of the commission, who served in the role under former President Giorgi Margvelashvili, did so.
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili has pardoned 19convicts for the Easter holiday, the head of the President’s Administration Lasha Zhvania stated.
Eight prisoners left the penitentiary facilities immediately on May 24. The other four, including a female, were on probation and have been released from all restrictions.
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.
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.
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 pardoned five inmates for Christmas, with convicted archpriest Giorgi Mamaladze not on the list. It is the first pardon act issued by the president after she declared a moratorium on pardoning prisoners in September 2019, following a turmoil surrounding two pardons of inmates convicted for murder.
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili has issued a pardon decree on the occasion of Annunciation holiday, releasing nine female prisoners. All the pardoned women have one or more minor children, and they did not commit violent crimes.
The Georgian parliament passed an amnesty bill earlier today which covers about 70 criminal articles and concerns more than 10,000 individuals, including 1,500 prisoners.
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili pardoned eight inmates earlier today, on St.George’s Day.
Georgia's president Salome Zurabishvili has issued pardons for 14 inmates, nine of which are set to be released on Friday, ahead of New Year's Eve celebrations.