Ombudsman of Georgia demanded to punish organizers of riots in Tbilisi
More than two months have passed since the mass attacks on journalists in Tbilisi, but the organizers of the riots have not been punished, said Georgian Ombudsman Nino Lomjaria. The charges of the Ombudsman against the representative of Alt-Info Zurab Makharadze and Archpriest Spiridon Tskipurishvili are inadequately substantiated, the Georgian Interior Ministry said.
Georgian Ombudsman Nino Lomjaria issued a statement on September 6, in which she demanded the results of the investigation into the July 5 riots in Tbilisi, and indicated that, despite the fact that two months have passed, the organisers of the attacks have not yet been punished. “Two months have passed, but the Georgian prosecutor’s office has not opened criminal cases against anyone for organising group violence. Two people should be prosecuted for organising group violence, as well as public incitement to violence,” Lomjaria said on September 6 on the TV channel "Rustavi-2.”
On July 5, during the riots against the gay pride parade in Tbilisi, according to the estimates of journalists, 53 media representatives were beaten. The journalistic community declared the investigation ineffective and called for the government to resign. Large-scale protests took place in Tbilisi and other large cities; the parliamentary sessions on July 12 and 18 were disrupted by journalists. By July 23, the number of those arrested in the attack on journalists in Tbilisi had reached 28.