European Court finds Georgia guilty of breaching rights of imprisoned journalists

The European Court on Human Rights has ordered Georgia to pay out 6000 euros to Shalva Ramishvili, founder of the TV Company named "202", and David Kokhreidze, Director of the Company, each as compensation of the non-pecuniary damage suffered by them as a result of their "inhuman and humiliating" custody conditions in January 2006. Additional 14,694 euros shall be paid to the journalists to reimburse their expenses. Georgia shall make the payments within three months.

We remind you that on March 29, 2006, the Tbilisi City Court sentenced Shalva Ramishvili to four years of imprisonment, and David Kokhreidze - to three years. The heads of the TV Company were arrested on August 29, 2005, on charges of extorting 100,000 US dollars from the then MP of Georgia from the party in power Koba Bekauri in exchange of blocking broadcasting of his compromising materials. Shalva Ramishvili would not admit his guilt and refuses from pardon. Mr Kokhreidze was pardoned and released in 2007.

"The European Court has noted that Shalva Ramishvili had to share a bed 120 centimetres wide with another's inmate. He could not use toilet without being watched by his cellmate. In the isolation facility, sanitary conditions were unacceptable, and the Court has established that the applicant was kept in inhuman and humiliating conditions," the "New Region" Agency quotes the decision of the Strasbourg Court.

The "Georgia-Online" Agency adds that the European Court has also stated that from November 27, 2005, to January 13, 2006, Messrs Kokhreidze and Ramishvili were illegally kept in custody without court judgement and with violation of custody terms.