12 years since the August war and grave consequences of the war
Tbilisi. The Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association releases a statement in regard to the 12th anniversary of the August war.
“The August 2008 war killed hundreds of people, affected many civilians and violated their fundamental rights. Serious and massive violations of human rights and freedoms took place during the war, including facts of ethnic cleansing, premeditated murder of civilians, disappearance, massive destruction of property, forced displacement, assault on civilians, unlawful deprivation of liberty, torture and inhuman treatment.
Unfortunately, facts of violation of rights of Georgian citizens continued to take place en masse even after the August 2008 war. After the war, authorities of the Russia, together with de facto representatives of the South Ossetia/Tskhinvali region and Abkhazia, actively started a so-called borderization process, which results in violation of rights of population living on the territory controlled by Georgia.
In parallel with the borderization, a vicious practice of unlawful and arbitrary detention of people began in the proximity of the occupation line. Every year, hundreds of citizens of Georgia, including women and children, become victims of abduction. As a result, people residing in villages, adjacent to the dividing line, have to live in a fear daily, while their safety and well-being are endangered. Current situation is aggravated by the fact that population lack information about where the so-called administrative border should be. In most cases abductees are detained administratively and released in exchange for a certain amount of money. However, during last years, there is also increase in number of cases of criminal arrests, when detainees remain in captivity for years. In parallel with the vicious practice of unlawful detention at the so-called administrative border, we also encounter cases of serious violations of human rights, such as deprivation of the right to life and/or bodily harm”, - is noted in the statement.
Source: The website of the organization
