Repressions against demonstrators
The report consists of two parts; first part refers to alleged harassments and repressions against the demonstrators during the last three months and the second part gives detailed information about so called Mukhrovani Mutiny incident. The report also identifies “several important features of state action in the context of ongoing demonstrations“, such as “state omission to investigate harassments against the demonstrators committed by ‘unidentified people’, use of disproportionate force and means prohibited by law to dismantle isolated groups of demonstrators for restoring the public order and etc.“
The Human Rights Center´s report states that Government of Georgia continues using undemocratic and in some cases illegal methods to quash the dissent and maintain the power.
The report zooms on specific human rights `endangered by the actions of the government carried out while dealing with the ‘‘mutiny’’.`In particular, it documents incompatibilities of state action with its positive and negative obligations under the right to life and the right to a fair trial, more precisely the presumption of innocence and access to a lawyer.
With the Mukhrovani incident in the centre of its focus, the report unpacks the chronicles of politically hot spring in Georgia, which has been in accordance to the report accompanied by numerous incidents of violence.
Mukhrovani Mutiny
The Mutiny in Mukhrovani Military Base allegedly took place on May 5, 2009, on the eve of NATO military exercises in Georgia. The report describes the development of events regarding the alleged mutiny and gives both official and unofficial versions of the ‘mutiny’.
Official version says that a tank battalion at Mukhrovani Military Base declared disobedience and ‘mutiny’ on May 5,2009. Later the government declared that the ‘mutiny’ “at a minimum aimed at thwarting NATO military exercises and at a maximum – organizing full-scale military ‘mutiny’ in the country.” Allegations of Russian involvement in the incident were also voiced. However, military experts doubted the government version. Their opinions are given in the report.
The report voices two widespread perceptions what the Mukrovani story is all about. The first opinion suggests that Government staged the ‘mutiny’ in order to avoid loss of control over the military while facing serious internal difficulties both in the country and in the army – especially after the war in August; the second opinion suggests that what happened at the Military Base was not a mutiny but disobedience towards the government order to dismantle the demonstrations.
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