Justice Minister highlights “no precedent” for allowing imprisoned former President Saakashvili medical treatment abroad
“There is no precedent for this and the law does not allow a convicted prisoner to be taken abroad. [...] We will always act in strict compliance with the law and, of course, in accordance with the recommendations of doctors,” the Minister told Imedi TV. Photo: Ministry of Justice
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There is no precedent in Georgia for transferring a convicted prisoner abroad for medical treatment, Justice Minister Rati Bregadze said on Thursday in reference to calls from a part of the political opposition to enable the imprisoned former President Mikheil Saakashvili to receive medical service abroad.
There is no precedent for this and the law does not allow a convicted prisoner to be taken abroad. [...] We will always act in strict compliance with the law and, of course, in accordance with the recommendations of doctors,” the Minister told Imedi TV.
On Thursday, Saakashvili was transferred from the No. 12 Prison in the city of Rustavi to the civilian clinic Vivamedi in capital Tbilisi, following an offer for the transfer from the Justice Ministry, made after demands on the matter from Saakashvili’s medical team and members of a part of political opposition.
The Ministry has also expressed “full confidence” in “medical institutions licensed in Georgia and their medical staff,” in response to the demands of Saakashvili’s supporters of his transfer for treatment abroad.
Saakashvili, who currently holds Ukrainian citizenship, is serving a sentence for abuse of power stemming back to his time as President. He was detained after his clandestine return to Georgia in October last year, prior to the 2021 municipal elections.
Georgia’s imprisoned former President Mikheil Saakashvili has been transferred from the No. 12 Prison in the city of Rustavi to the civilian clinic Vivamedi in capital Tbilisi, following an offer for the transfer from the Justice Ministry, made after demands on the matter from Saakashvili’s medical team and members of a part of political opposition.
Georgia’s Justice Ministry on Wednesday called on the imprisoned former President Mikheil Saakashvili to accept health services offered to him in detention “without preconditions,” following a list of demands released by the politician as terms for accepting an offer of his transfer to a civilian clinic for medical checks.
Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili has welcomed the proposal by the country’s Justice Ministry to transfer the imprisoned former President Mikheil Saakashvili to a civilian clinic for medical examination and treatment on Tuesday.
The Georgian Justice Ministry has proposed transferring the imprisoned former President Mikheil Saakashvili to Vivamedi, a civilian clinic in capital Tbilisi, for medical checks and treatment, Minister Rati Bregadze said after the Government meeting on Tuesday.
Mikheil Sarjveladze, the Chairman of the Committee on Human Rights of the Georgian Parliament, on Friday said the demand from a part of the political opposition for allowing the imprisoned former president Mikheil Saakashvili a transfer for medical treatment abroad was “unfounded,” adding the goal of the request was to allow the politician “to evade justice”.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili on Friday dismissed calls by a part of political opposition for allowing the imprisoned former President Mikheil Saakashvili medical treatment abroad "complete speculation," adding the politician should "obey the law" and serve his time in prison.
The Special Penitentiary Service of Georgia on Saturday rejected media reports on the imprisoned former President Mikheil Saakashvili being denied family member visits, as well as on Nika Gvaramia, the founder of Mtavari Arkhi channel, being kept in solitary confinement.
The European Court of Human Rights has not received “a single complaint” about human rights violations at the Georgian penitentiary system since 2013, Georgian Minister of Justice Rati Bregadze said on Friday at a plenary session of the Georgian Parliament.
If the imprisoned former President of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili decides to withdraw from politics, the move will “in no way” lead to his release from prison, Mikheil Sarjveladze, an MP from the ruling Georgian Dream party, said on Monday in response to comments by Saakashvili’s lawyers about his alleged plans to leave the political scene to “look after his health”.