Parliament Speaker: “no evidence” from US on sanctioned judges, former Prosecutor General

Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Friday said the United States Department of State had presented “no evidence” backing its sanctioning of Georgian judges and former Prosecutor General Otar Partskhaladze seven and one month from the decisions respectively.

Papuashvili was commenting on the State Department’s sanctioning in April of four senior judges - Mikheil Chinchaladze, Levan Murusidze, Irakli Shengelia and Valerian Tsertsvadze - for their alleged “involvement in significant corruption”, and in September for Partskhaladze, who was sanctioned for “influencing Georgian society and politics for the benefit of Russia”. 

It is a general human and legal rule that the one who accuses must prove it. This is an elementary rule that is thousands of years old, has been in effect on this planet and is in effect in every country, including the US. Precisely because it is in the interest of our country, our state appealed to three different agencies of the US [...] unfortunately, no evidence was presented”, the Speaker said.

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Papuashvili questioned the motivation of the Department for the sanctions but said he would refrain from “speculating on this matter”.

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We look forward to [working with] the new US Ambassador [to Georgia]”, Papuashvili said in reference to the recent arrival of Robin Dunnigan as the new US diplomat in Georgia, adding “it would be a good step if the US lifted the visa restrictions imposed on four Georgian citizens, considering that seven months have passed and the fact is that the US itself does not have an answer about it”.

The Parliament official said the move “would be one of the good signs of the implementation of the spirit of strategic partnership between Georgia and the US”.