Speaker Papuashvili: political insinuations won’t help anyone evade justice in Georgia

Georgia’s parliamentary speaker, Shalva Papuashvili, has rejected claims that a criminal case against former Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili is politically motivated, saying attempts to politicise criminal proceedings must be resisted.

Papuashvili was responding to a question about a letter by Garibashvili, who wrote - “Shalva, this is not a legal process - this is ruthless political persecution.”

“Political statements and insinuations have never helped anyone evade justice in Georgia. We must oppose any attempt to politicise a criminal case. Charges have been brought and a legal process requires legal answers,” Papuashvili said.

He added that there were witness testimonies and confessions that needed to be addressed through the legal process rather than political arguments.

Papuashvili also criticised what he described as the use of a deceased person and his statements for political purposes, referring to a person who had died by suicide.

“Everyone knows the circumstances of this case. The Georgian justice system and the Georgian state are showing one thing: justice is calmly following the legal process and is not allowing anyone to distract it or turn it into a political process,” he said.

Papuashvili also argued that Georgian court rulings had repeatedly been reviewed by the European Court of Human Rights and that Georgia’s judiciary had demonstrated its professionalism and fairness.