Parliament Speaker stresses former President Saakashvili “committed crimes in Georgia” in response to Ukrainian foreign office
Papuashvili’s comments followed the Ukrainian body’s call on Thursday to allow Saakashvili’s transfer to a European- or United States-based clinic for further treatment, following similar calls from the imprisoned former President’s lawyers and a part of the Georgian opposition. Photo: Parliament of Georgia
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Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Friday responded to a call by the Ukrainian foreign office for Georgian authorities to accept the request for delaying the imprisoned former President Mikheil Saakashvili’s sentence for ensuring his medical treatment abroad by saying the former official had committed crimes in Georgia that necessitated his serving of the sentence in the country.
Papuashvili’s comments followed the Ukrainian body’s call on Thursday to allow Saakashvili’s transfer to a European- or United States-based clinic for further treatment, following similar calls from the imprisoned former President’s lawyers and a part of the Georgian opposition.
Saakashvili committed crimes on the territory of Georgia. No one denies these crimes anymore. We have also seen the resolution [of the European Parliament], in which not a single word was said about Saakashvili being tried wrongfully. No one disputes [validity of his court cases] anymore”, the head of the legislative body said.
“Accordingly, he committed a crime on the territory of Georgia and is [therefore] serving his sentence in Georgia. He is not the only citizen of Ukraine, as far as I know, who is serving a sentence on the territory of Georgia, in a Georgian prison”, Papuashvili concluded.
Saakashvili has been receiving treatment at the Vivamedi clinic since May 12, after he was moved from the Gori Military Hospital - where he was transferred in late November 2021 from the hospital of the Gldani No.18 prison. The latter, in turn, served as his detention location after his move from the Rustavi No.12 prison, the initial detention venue, in early November last year.
The third President, currently a citizen of Ukraine, was arrested in Tbilisi in October 2021 on his clandestine return to Georgia ahead of municipal elections. He has been serving a six-year term for abuse of power in two separate cases stemming back to his time in office, while three other cases are pending.
Archil Talakvadze, the Georgian Parliament's Vice Speaker, on Thursday said the entourage of the imprisoned former President Mikheil Saakashvili “do not care about his health”, alleging their interest in facilitating his escape from justice through a bypassing of the law.
The Special Penitentiary Service of Georgia on Wednesday posted footage on social media of the imprisoned former president Mikheil Saakashvili, which shows his condition in different periods at the Vivamedi civilian clinic.
Irakli Kobakhidze, the Chair of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Wednesday said attempts of “politicised interference” with Georgian justice were “unacceptable”, in his remarks on debates held on Monday in the European Parliament about latest developments around the health and sentence of the imprisoned former President Mikheil Saakashvili.
Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Wednesday said it was “important” that the imprisoned former President Mikheil Saakashvili cooperated with the medical staff and the domestic penitentiary system, in his remarks over the latest developments around the former official’s health and sentence.
Roman Gotsiridze, a MP for the opposition United National Movement party, on Friday said it would “not be right” for party members to leave their Parliamentary mandates in protest over the latest developments around the health and sentence of the imprisoned former President Mikheil Saakashvili.
Mikheil Sarjveladze, the Chair of the Georgian Parliament's Committee on Human Rights, on Monday said the goal of the hunger strike declared by several members of the opposition United National Movement party in support of allowing the imprisoned former President Mikheil Saakashvili a transfer abroad for medical treatment was for “facilitating his escape from responsibility”.
Mamuka Mdinaradze, the Executive Secretary of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Tuesday said the 2021 arrival of former President Mikheil Saakashvili from Ukraine to Georgia had been a “special operation” to involve the country in the ongoing war in Ukraine.
Citizens opposition party MP Aleko Elisashvili on Monday criticised the appeal of the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy for Georgian authorities to enable the imprisoned former President Mikheil Saakashvili's transfer abroad for medical treatment as "inappropriate".
The Ukrainian Government was “directly involved” in the “special operation” to send the former President Mikheil Saakashvili to Georgia and the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy “bears his share of responsibility” in this regard, Irakli Kobakhidze, the Chair of the ruling Georgian Dream party, said on Tuesday in response to the appeal of Zelenskyy to Georgian authorities to transfer the imprisoned former President Saakashvili abroad for medical treatment.