3 injured during June 20 rally dispersal in Tbilisi granted victim status
Mako Gomuri, who lost one of her eyes during the June 20 rally in Tbilisi, is 19 years old. Photo: Mako Gomuri’s Facebook.
Tweet 
Share
Three civilians who received injuries during the June 20 rally dispersal in central Tbilisi have been granted victim status, the Georgian Chief Prosecutor’s Office has reported.
One of the three is Mako Gomuri, a 19-year-old who lost one of her eyes due to a rubber bullet fired by a law enforcer on the day.
Two other people who received various injuries during the dispersal and have received the status are Omar Sekhniashvili and Mirza Liparteliani.
The Prosecutor’s Office says that the status have been granted to these individuals based on the conclusion of medical studies and after the completion of necessary investigative procedures.
As for granting the victim status to other individuals, the process is in progress and public will receive information regarding the issue when mandatory procedures are complete,” the Prosecutor’s Office said.
The dispersal on June 20 left 240 injured. Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge.
The rally on June 20 was sparked by the address of Russian MP Sergey Gavrilov from the seat of the Georgian parliamentary speaker earlier the same day, during an international, religious forum.
- 17 civilians and three police officers have been charged so far regarding the June 20 rally, including former Defence Minister Irakli Okruashvili and opposition MP Nika Melia, GYLA says.
- 67 law-enforcers and seven protestors have been recognised as victims.
- The Georgian Chief Prosecutor’s Office has launched an investigation into police actions during the rally dispersal.
- Then Interior Minister Giorgi Gakharia [now the prime minister of Georgia] said in a recent TV interview that the rally became “violent” starting at 10 p.m. following “a systematic and organised” attack on the parliament building on June 20.
- Gakharia also said that he gave the order for the rally to be dispersed after some of the demonstrators decided to storm the parliament building.
- The dispersal left 240 injured and 305 detained.
Tbilisi City Court has refused to grant victim status to 16 individuals, including eight journalists, who received injuries during the June 20 rally dispersal in central Tbilisi. The court says that currently there is no sufficient evidence to grant victim status to these individuals.
The Georgian Interior Ministry has provided an explanation of the Interior Minister Giorgi Gakharia’s statements made yesterday that he watched the storm on the Georgian parliament building on June 20 with foreign ambassadors, from the parliament building of Georgia.
Deputy Interior Minister Natia Mezvrishvili says that police were attacked during the June 20 rally in Tbilisi and they were forced to defend themselves and use force. Mezvrishvili says that it is less important who made the order, or whether the police acted without the order of top officials.
The protesters are leaving the demonstration in front of the parliament of Georgia in central Tbilisi as the law enforcers have used tear gas and rubber bullets. The number of injured is not officially announced yet, but Georgian media reports a dozen of people have been damaged.
A plea bargain has been signed with three individuals earlier today after they confessed to involvement in group violence during the June 2019 protests in Tbilisi.
The European Court of Human Rights has accepted applications prepared by the Human Rights Centre (HRC), asking the Prosecutor General’s Office to grant plaintiff status to journalists injured during the dispersal of June 20-21, 2019 protest demonstrations near the parliament of Georgia.
The Georgian Young Lawyers Association (GYLA) has urged political parties not to implement amnesty for alleged violations committed by law enforcement during clashes in Tbilisi on June 20-21, 2019, after a clause for amnesty was included in the proposal by the European Council President designed to solve the political crisis of the recent months in Georgia.
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has launched hearings in cases concerning the excessive use of force by the state and the failure to conduct an effective investigation into the actions taken against journalists and protesters during the dispersal of a rally in June 20-21, 2019.
Tbilisi City Court has obliged the Georgian Interior Ministry to pay victim of the June 20, 2019 Tbilisi protest Luka Petriashvili a total of 35,000 GEL, his lawyer Beka Basilaia has announced earlier today.