Georgia to Lodge ECHR Application Against Russia over Tatunashvili Case   

The Georgian authorities will lodge an interstate complaint with the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) against Russia over the death of Archil Tatunashvili, a thirty-five-year-old Georgian citizen, who died at the hands of the Russian-backed authorities in Tskhinvali.

In a statement released on Monday, the Justice Ministry said it had launched preparations shortly after Tatunashvili’s death. “The process will be over very soon, [and is carried out] in accordance with all those procedures, which will increase our chances [for winning the case].”

The Justice Ministry announcement came a day after the Human Rights Center, a Tbilisi-based human rights watchdog, reiterated its earlier calls to the Government of Georgia to challenge Russia as the power exercising effective control over Tskhinvali Region/South Ossetia.

The Human Rights Center, which represents Archil Tatunashvili’s family and intends to file an individual ECHR complaint on their behalf, convened a press conference on the matter, hailing the Justice Ministry decision, but adding that the process “should not have taken so long.”

The organization also expressed concern over delays in the investigation, and slammed the National Forensics Bureau for failing to publish the results of the examination process.

“The National Forensics Bureau has been carrying out the examination procedures for over two months and the family has still no information on its results … the process is absolutely unclear and there is a huge information vacuum,” lawyer Tamar Avaliani stated.

Avaliani also noted that the Human Rights Center would lodge a complaint against the Georgian government, unless the investigation was conducted duly and effectively. “This is exactly why we want to have an effective and thorough investigation,” she added.

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