Human Rights Watch: White House needs to raise rights concerns during Saakashvili's visit

U.S. President George W. Bush should urge Georgia's new president to put human rights at the core of his reform agenda, including his anticorruption drive, Human Rights Watch said in a briefing paper released on February 24. Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili will meet with Bush at the White House on February 25.

"The United States strongly backed the reform movement at the end of the Shevardnadze era," said Rachel Denber, acting executive director of Human Rights Watch's Europe and Central Asia Division. "Now that the reformists are in power, the Bush administration should make sure they deliver on human rights and real reform."

The 14-page briefing paper flags several human rights concerns that have emerged since Georgia's new government came to power in January, and outlines longstanding human rights problems in the country. Human Rights Watch made a series of recommendations to the new Georgian government and the international community on improving the country's poor human rights record.

"Bush should tell President Saakashvili that continued U.S. aid to Georgia will depend on respect for human rights," said Denber. "Although the new government enjoys huge support at home and abroad, there are worrying trends that need to be nipped in the bud."

The Saakashvili government came to power after public protests forced the resignation of then-President Eduard Shevardnadze following fraudulent parliamentary elections in November 2003. The country is desperately short of money, and has high rates of unemployment and poverty. According to an annual survey by Transparency International, Georgia is considered one of the most corrupt countries in the world.

High-level official statements promising and praising the harshest methods to fight corruption may encourage violations of human rights, given Georgia's recent history of police abuse, Human Rights Watch said. On Georgian television in early February, for example, Saakashvili discussed the Interior Ministry's new anticorruption operation, saying, "I gave an order to start this operation and, if there is any resistance, to eliminate any such bandit on the spot, eliminate and exterminate them on the spot, and free the people from the reign of these bandits."

"Measures against corruption are urgently needed," Denber said. "But without respect for human rights and rule of law, the government cannot expect its reforms to be ultimately successful."

The briefing paper flags restrictions on the right to freedom of assembly since the new government took power. Seven men are currently in pre-trial detention, accused of disrupting public order when attending a protest in January that blocked a road in a western province of Georgia. Although the protest was peaceful, the police reportedly beat protesters after dispersing the gathering.

In this and other cases of reported police violence, the authorities have failed to investigate the allegations or even publicly make statements against the use of unwarranted violence by law enforcement officials. By contrast, commenting on those who participated in the January protest, Saakashvili stated afterwards that "they will be dealt a very hard blow in their teeth."

In a move that suggested impatience for public debate, the Georgian government in early February rushed through controversial constitutional amendments granting more powers to the president and creating the position of prime minister. The government failed to publish the draft amendments at least a month in advance to allow for public debate, as required by the Georgian Constitution.

The briefing paper also summarizes several longstanding human rights problems the government inherited from the Shevardnadze era. Torture in pre-trial detention is common. In the past four years, religious intolerance became widespread, and the government fostered a climate of impunity for hundreds of attacks on religious minorities. Hundreds of thousands of people, displaced by separatist conflicts in Abkhazia and South Ossetia, live in squalor. Chechen refugees in Georgia are vulnerable to forced repatriation to Russia, where they faced serious threats to their lives, safety and freedom. Journalists have faced sporadic violent attacks.

Parliamentary elections in Georgia are scheduled for March 28. The Human Rights Watch briefing paper recommends that the Georgian government consult with the Council of Europe and other international bodies when making legislative reforms and in preparations for the elections to ensure that they comply with international standards. Other recommendations to the government include:

• Issue high-level public statements making clear that torture is unacceptable and punishable by law and that due process rights must be observed, particularly in the context of the anticorruption campaign;
• Ensure that prosecutions undertaken in the anticorruption drive are carried out on the merits of the case alone and are not driven by political considerations;
• Refrain from commenting on the substance of criminal cases, making it clear that the executive will not infringe on the independence of the judiciary;
• Instruct law enforcement bodies to allow peaceful protests and gatherings, and ensure that police who assault peaceful protesters are brought to justice;
• Issue public statements encouraging a plurality of opinions, critical reporting, and freedom of the media.