Georgian citizens arrested in Turkey to serve probation terms in Georgia
By Messenger Staff
Monday, July 25
The relevant Georgian and Turkish ministries have signed an agreement through which Georgian citizens who served their prison terms in Turkey will soon serve the following probation term in Georgia.
Georgia’s Ministry of Corrections says it was an “unprecedented solution”.
Probation in criminal law is a period of supervision over an offender ordered by a court instead of serving time in prison.
In some jurisdictions, the term 'probation' only applies to community sentences (alternatives to incarceration), such as suspended sentences.
In others, probation also includes the supervision of those conditionally released from prison on parole.
The recent agreement between Georgia and Turkey concerns the last situation.
Based on the legislation of Turkey, an individual who leaves prison is obliged to rent an accommodation in Turkey for certain period and live under the supervision of the local law enforcement bodies.
“The process was related to various problems for Georgian citizens,” Minister of Corrections Kakha Kakhishvili said.
The citizens of Turley from Georgian prisons will also be able to serve the probation terms in their home country.
More than 300 Georgians are currently serving prison terms in Turkey.
Kakhishvili has also met the Ambassador of Turkey to Georgia Zeki Levent Gumrukcu; the Minister and the Ambassador spoke how the rights of Georgian and Turkish prisoners could be better protected in the two neighbouring nations.
Kakhishvili said one of the topics of the discussion concerned the possibility of placing Georgian inmates in one and the same prison, where watching Georgian TV channels would be available for them.
The Ambassador stressed over the last three years Georgia has demonstrated very significant progress and achievements in a range of fields, penitentiary system reforms among them.
