The US State Department has imposed sanctions on the President of the Court of Appeals of Georgia, Mikhail Chinchaladze, a member of the High Council of Justice, Levan Murusidze, the judge of the Court of Appeals of Tbilisi, Irakli Shengelia , and the former president of this court, Valériane Tsertsvadze. On this subject reported on the United States Department of State website.
The judges are suspected of being involved in “significant corruption” by making politicized decisions in favor of the authorities. According to the State Department, these individuals “abused their positions as presidents of courts and members of the Georgia Supreme Court of Justice” and, in doing so, undermined the rule of law and the trust of the public. public in the Georgian justice system.
Chinchaladze, Murusidze, Shengelia and Tsertsvadze were subject to visa sanctions under Law 7031(c), the agency said. Thus, the judges, as well as the members of their family (spouses and children) will not be able to obtain American visas. The decision is final.
“The United States continues to stand with all Georgians in support of democracy and the rule of law, and will continue to hold accountable those who abuse state power for personal gain,” the official said. state department.
This is the first time in the history of US-Georgian relations that Washington has imposed sanctions on Tbilisi, Remarks Giorgi Dvali, Kommersant correspondent in Georgia.
As the newspaper writes, Chinchaladze, Murusidze, Shengelia and Tsertsvadze were often listed in reports by influential Georgian non-profit organizations as “leaders of the judicial clan” which acts on behalf of the ruling Georgian Dream party.
The reaction of the Georgian authorities
Irakli Kobakhidze, chairman of the ruling Georgian Dream party, told IMEDI that the United States filed a complaint against the judges without providing evidence, transmits Portal “News from Georgia”. According to Kobakhidze, such decisions show that Washington intends to interfere in the work of the Georgian judicial system. “They don’t consider Georgia a state, they don’t recognize our statehood,” he said.
One of the people on the sanctions list, Levan Murusidze, also called the restrictions imposed a US attempt to create a “managed court” in Georgia, informed Rustavi 2.
Minister of Foreign Affairs of Georgia Ilia Darchiashvili writing a letter to US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, in which he called the decision to impose sanctions “unacceptable” and also expressed hope that the State Department will “provide relevant evidence or reconsider its decision “.
“(Otherwise) Georgia and the Georgian people perceive this as pressure on an independent court of a sovereign state and gross interference in its activities, which would harm the long-term friendly relations between Georgia and the United States” , said the head of the Georgian government. Ministry of Foreign Affairs added.
Chairman of the Committee on Legal Affairs of the Georgian Parliament Anri Okhanashvili, in turn does not exclude the creation of a commission of inquiry which will deal with the issue of bringing judges to justice. “This (the decision to impose sanctions) negatively affects the reputation of the judiciary, so it should be paid attention to,” Okhanashvili stressed.
Leader of Mikheil Saakashvili’s opposition party “United National Movement” Levan Khabeishvili considered The State Department’s decision is “clear confirmation of the fact” “that there is a clannish and corrupt court in Georgia.” In addition, he called on opponents of power to come together for a national rally on April 9.
In June 2022, the European Commission denied Georgia by granting the status of a candidate country for membership of the European Union, citing the fact that the country has not fulfilled the necessary conditions for this. The European Commission, in particular, has recommended that the Georgian authorities reform the judicial system. In early March, protests also took place in Georgia against the adoption of a local version of the law on foreign agents, which the opposition called “Russian”. However, against the backdrop of rallies and public pressure, the Georgian parliament rejected this bill.
