TBILISI, August 10 – Georgian prosecutors are questioning veterans and former participants in the 1992-93 war in Abkhazia after claims of mistreatment of prisoners in that war.
The probe will look into claims by Giorgi Baramidze (pictured) that prisoners were shot, and is based on suspicion of treason and sabotage. The politician is not charged in the case.
The launching of the investigation has triggered an unusual debate in which several people have strongly rejected Baramidze’s account while also questioning whether his words should be treated as a crime.
Baramidze, a senior figure in the United National Movement (UNM), said in an interview with politician Iago Khvichia that Georgian forces in the early part of the war did not take prisoners but shot them.
He later qualified the statement, saying the situation changed after his arrival and that prisoner exchanges subsequently took place. Baramidze later said he should have used different words to describe events during the first days of the war and stressed that he had never witnessed Georgian forces shooting people who had surrendered or been captured.
Prosecutors have begun interviewing people with first-hand knowledge of the conflict and prisoner exchanges.
Paata Zakareishvili, who worked on humanitarian issues and prisoner exchanges during the war, told prosecutors on Saturday that Baramidze’s claim did not correspond with reality. He said Baramidze’s involvement in prisoner exchanges was largely formal and that he would not have been in a position to know what he claimed.
But Zakareishvili also opposed criminal prosecution, arguing that Baramidze should face political rather than criminal consequences.
On Monday, Koba Liklikadze, who worked at the armed forces’ joint press center during the war, was also questioned. He criticized Baramidze’s statement and said veterans regarded it as an insult to their honor, but said he did not believe Baramidze should end up behind bars. Liklikadze also noted that Russia has already issued a warrant for Baramidze’s arrest.
Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze took the opposite view, describing statements that damage the reputation of the Georgian military and national interests as acts of betrayal.
The controversy has also crossed party lines. Vika Pilpani, an opposition MP from the For Georgia party of ex-PM Giorgi Gakharia, said Baramidze should apologize, but called the prosecution investigation political revenge. She argued that Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze should also be investigated over statements blaming the Georgian side for the 2008 war with Russia.
