Georgian Woman Detained by Occupants Sentenced to 2 Months in Prison

Georgian citizen Maia Otinashvili, 37, detained by so called border guards at the occupation line near Gori municipality village Khurvaleti on September 29, was sentenced to two months in prison for “illegal crossing the border.”

Georgia’s State Minister for Reconciliation and Civic Equality, Ketevan Tsikhelashvili, expressed concern over the issue, saying this is a “highly worrying, alarming and shameful” fact.

“This fact is not only unlawful but inhumane, because she is the mother of three children detained on her own plot of land. The employees of the Ministry arrived at the spot, met with the family and visited the place where the detention took place. It is five meters from her house,” she added.

Tsikhelashvili stressed that the actions of the occupant forces have no legitimacy or justification.

“All possible channels have been activated for the release of the detained woman,” the Minister said, adding the European Union Monitoring Mission and International Committee of the Red Cross had also been informed about the case.

By Thea Morrison