Georgian President Pardons 187 prisoners
By Gvantsa Gabekhadze
Thursday, December 28
(TBILISI)--President of Georgia Giorgi Margvelashvili has pardoned 187 inmates for the New Year holiday. From the 123 inmates who left prisons immediately on December 27, 65 had been sentenced for different drug usage.
Head of the Pardon Commission Zviad Koridze stated that Margvelashvili took the recommendations of the White Noise movement into account when making decisions over the pardon.
The movement uniting ordinary people and famous faces protests against Georgia’s tough drug policy and demands decriminalization of using of all drugs, not only marijuana.
From the pardoned prisoners 12 are women and three are minors.
“The president pardoned those as well who faced life imprisonments. They saw some years deducted from their sentences,” head of the Pardon Commission Zviad Koridze said.
The Pardon Commission studied 1,182 cases in total.
The President’s Pardon Commission is composed of ten people including Koridze.
The Commission members are mainly lawyers from the civil sector, public figures, the Public Defender and a spiritual representative from Georgia’s Patriarchate.
The group must discuss all cases sent to the Pardon Commission by inmates or their families and decide which prisoners they believe deserve to be pardoned. The list then is sent to the President.
The President makes the final decision whether to pardon the inmates or not.
