President pardons 5 for Christmas, convicted archpriest remains in prison

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 premeditated murder. 

The five inmates were pardoned in line with new pardon rules and procedures adopted during the moratorium, Zurabishvili has stated earlier today. 

Zurabishvili said that there were “no grounds” to pardon the archpriest, “especially in the situation when pardon rules have become stricter.” 

• Archpriest found guilty for plotting murder, sentenced to 9 years

The Holy Synod of the Patriarchate requested the pardon of Mamaladze in the autumn of 2019. 

The family of Mamaladze says that the president “has failed to resist pressure exercised by the church and Patriarch Ilia II, who do not want to see father Giorgi out of prison.”