Deputy Interior Minister says police has “legitimate right to use proportional force” if peaceful protest “turns violent”
Aleksandre Darakhvelidze, the Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs of Georgia, on Thursday claimed the police was the “only entity with legitimate right to use proportional force If a peaceful demonstration exceeds legally defined norms and becomes violent”. Photo: Interior Ministry
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Aleksandre Darakhvelidze, the Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs of Georgia, on Thursday claimed the police was the “only entity with legitimate right to use proportional force If a peaceful demonstration exceeds legally defined norms and becomes violent”.
The comment came in Darakhvelidze’s Interview with Imedi TV, which followed a media report this week that claimed illegal use of police force during protest rallies against the controversial domestic law on transparency of foreign influence earlier this year.
The Deputy Minister said in instances of law-breaking at rallies the police response could also involve use of “special means” such as tear gas and water cannons, as stipulated in the police law of Georgia, adopted back in 2013.
The Government official pointed out the law “fully reflects requirements of German legislation and is in complete compliance with international standards”.
Based on the law on police, an internal instruction was issued, approved by the Minister's order, which is Order 1002. It regulates specific behaviours of police officers, defining use of certain means and circumstances under which they can be employed”, he said, clarifying that the instruction enacted in 2015 included a provision prohibiting the simultaneous use of water cannons and tear gas.
Darakhvelidze added the restriction on such crowd control measures was lifted in 2021 after the Interior Ministry, on reviewing international practices, guidance documents from the Organisation for Security and Co-Operation in Europe Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, and experiences of police forces in other countries found that “no such prohibition existed elsewhere”.
Darakhvelidze also emphasised the country's Constitution and legislation “fully protects the right of any individual to hold peaceful assemblies and demonstrations”, meaning “anyone can gather and express their protest on any issue peacefully”.