Insaf Aliyev goes on hunger strike in Tbilisi prison

Georgian political prisoner Insaf Aliyev, accused of violence during protests, has gone on a hunger strike, demanding medical care and better prison conditions.

As reported by Kavkazsky Uzel, Insaf Aliyev is in custody on charges of group violence during protests. At a court hearing on July 14, the investigator said that the charges against Insaf Aliyev were brought after a video of him was published on YouTube. lawyers pointed out that the recording did not record any illegal actions by Aliyev.

A statement about Aliyev's hunger strike on August 11 was distributed by his lawyer Ayhan Hasanli. According to the defense attorney, Aliyev has health problems and needs to take medications that he was promised but never received, Interpressnews writes.

Insaf Aliyev also complained about inhumane conditions of detention. According to the prisoner, he and his cellmates complained about unsanitary conditions in the cell, in particular, a large number of cockroaches. After that, they were transferred to another cell where there was no water and the sewage system was clogged.

“They could not wash their hands and wash their faces, or wash dishes, which is why they could not eat and their access to food was actually limited,” the lawyer explained. He noted that Aliyev contacted authorized prison employees and asked to solve the problem, but no one responded to his request for five hours. As a result, he began to bang his foot on the door to draw attention to the problem, but he was accused of violating the order and sent to the isolation ward for five days.

The defender noted that “the Public Defender’s office was informed” about the situation, but by the evening of August 11, the ombudsman’s representatives had not visited Aliyev, who is still in solitary confinement and does not have access to medications - he was not allowed to take the medications he already had with him to the detention center. At the same time, representatives of the Georgian Dream claim that they have “the highest quality penitentiary institutions,” and that any problems can be resolved by contacting the ombudsman, the Pirveli TV channel reports.

Insaf Aliyev is being held in Gldani prison, according to a website dedicated to Georgian political prisoners. Doctor Giorgi Akhobadze, who was in custody until August 6, spoke on July 21 about the unbearable conditions of detention in Gldani prison - he reported that the premises do not have sufficient ventilation, and in the summer heat, prisoners suffer from stuffiness.

"Caucasian Knot" published a report "The Main Thing About the Persecution of Protesters in Georgia". The Caucasian Knot collected materials about the parliamentary elections and the protests that followed them on the page "Elections in Georgia-2024".

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