Justice Minister Says Saakashvili to Be Allowed to Attend Court Trial after Ending Hunger Strike
By The Messenger Staff
Tuesday, November 23
According to the Minister of Justice Rati Bregadze, ending the hunger strike by Mikheil Saakashvili is the reason for the former president to be taken to the courtroom for the next trial.
As the Minister says, they will wait for the conclusion of the doctors on this issue.
“As it is already known to the public, Mikheil Saakashvili has stopped the hunger strike. We will, of course, wait for the doctors' report on his health condition, and the exclusion of this one factor gives us grounds to present Mikheil Saakashvili in the courtroom,” Bregadze said.
According to him, Mikheil Saakashvili was not taken to court for two reasons - safety and health.
The third president of Georgia, Mikheil Saakashvili, was not allowed to attend his trials. The Penitentiary Service refused to take the third president to the courtroom. The agency named potential ‘destruction’ as the reason, noting that they may have obstructed Saakashvili's ousting process.
Several cases have been filed in Georgia against the third president of Georgia, Mikheil Saakashvili, some of which have been sentenced, some of which have not.
The case of Sandro Girgvliani - According to the prosecutor's office, the ex-president exceeded his official authority when he pardoned the people convicted in the Girgvliani case. In this case, on January 5, 2018, the Tbilisi City Court sentenced Saakashvili to 3 years in prison in absentia. However, the former president was banned from working in the public service for 1 year and 6 months.
In addition, the court found Mikheil Saakashvili guilty in the case of beating Valeri Gelashvili.
Saakashvili’s name is involved in the November 7 attack on Imedi. He was charged in July 2014 and remanded in custody in absentia in August. On November 10, according to the court decision, the measure of restraint imposed on Mikheil Saakashvili in the November 7 case was abolished.
Saakashvili has also been charged with illegal border crossing.
