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On October 1, 2012 Parliamentary Elections were held in Georgia. It was first elections throughout twenty-year-long independence history of the country when the government has changed through elections.

Human Rights House Tbilisi’s member organizations condemn incitement to violence by the newspaper Asaval-Dasavali, which published personal data of Gldani Prison Personnel in their edition with the headline “Recognize the Butchers!”

Video footages depicting grave abuses, beating and humiliation of prisoners by the prison guards were last week shown on Georgian TV channels.

Nongovernmental organizations condemn practice of torture and inhuman treatment in penitentiary system, request prompt investigation of the facts and to raise criminal and political responsibilities of perpetrators.

Eka became victim of sexual violence at the age of nine. She is among a huge number of Georgian womens that are sexually abused – and ignored.

Lately, the government of Georgia and the ruling party – United National Movement [UNM] became targets of strict criticism from two international institutions simultaneously. Co-rapporteurs from Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) and OSCE PA Pre-Election Mission laid out particular concerns about current situation in Georgia and demanded the government to create equal conditions for all political parties during pre-election campaign.

Four years have passed since the armed conflict of August, 2008. Hundreds of people – including peaceful civilians -died during the Russian-Georgian hostilities. Thousands of Georgians were displaced and the territories of Akhalgori district and Kodori Gorge were occupied by Russian military forces. Georgia completely lost control over enclaves in South Ossetia which were previously inhabited by ethnic Georgian people.

Natural disasters are a common problem in Georgia. Floods, landslides, storms, hurricanes and other natural disasters often destroy houses and residential areas for people. According to Georgian legislation, people uprooted by natural disasters, so called eco-migrants, do not have IDP status and are not entitled to the social benefits of internally displaced people (IDPs). One of the main shortcomings in dealing with natural disasters is the lack of risk assessments which leads to damages that end up costing the state millions of lari. Most often, the government chooses to deal with the results of natural disasters instead of investing in preventive measures.

In his report, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, Maina Kiai, voiced alarm at the increasing climate of fear and intimidation against opposition parties, labour unions and members of non-governmental organizations.