Day: October 10, 2023

A man suspected in the murder of a 14-year-old girl in the village of Lambalo in eastern Georgia has been detained. According to the investigation, 27-year-old Asim Aslanov kidnapped the girl with the purpose of marriage and killed her when she tried to escape.

The Georgian Interior Ministry reports that a criminal case has been opened for aggravated premeditated murder of a family member and illegal carrying of weapons. This is punishable by up to 20 years’ imprisonment or life imprisonment.

In addition, the police are investigating possible forced marriage.

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• Over 5 months of this year, minors were recognized as victims of sexual violence in 75 cases
• Georgia: Strasbourg Court recognizes state violations in femicide case

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What happened in the village of Lambalo?

The murder of 14-year-old Aitaj became known on October 6, 2023.

The next day, Aitaj’s mother told reporters that two months ago, a 27-year-old man forcibly took her daughter to Lambalo village under the pretext of marriage.

According to the girl’s mother, she could not take Aitaj away as the kidnapper threatened their family with violence.

“One day my daughter went to the field to fetch a calf, I knew nothing. There was an ambush. She was dragged into a car. She fought back, tried to break free. When he brought her back to his house, she tried to escape again. He caught her in the garden, put a rope around her neck and dragged her home… I told him that it was not yet time [for marriage], that when my daughter was 17-18 years old, then I would give him an answer. I demand that this man die or get a life sentence, otherwise I will shoot him myself,” says Aitaj’s mother.

But there are other versions of Aitaj’s abduction and subsequent murder. Thus, one of the relatives, Khalil Omarov, told Radio Liberty that the girl’s family did not complain to the police about the kidnapper because “the girl told her mother that she loved this guy and stayed with him.”

According to the detainee’s father, Aslan and Aitaj “had a good relationship.” He claims he does not know what happened on the day of the murder:

“They were engaged and it happened with the consent of the girl’s parents,” he says.

Lambalo villagers say that on October 6, Aitaj again tried to escape from her abductor’s house while preparing for his cousin’s wedding. According to fellow villagers, it was then that Asim Aslanov shot and killed an underage girl with whom he was in an unregistered marriage.

The Venice Commission publishes a new opinion on the amendments to the Organic Law on Courts of General Jurisdiction in Georgia, noting that important recommendations have not been taken into account.

Conclusions of the Venice Commission:

● The Commission wishes to emphasize the priority of the first key recommendation, which concerns the comprehensive reform of the High Council of Justice. A similar requirement was set by the EU Commission in its opinion on Georgia’s application for EU accession. This recommendation is not included in either the June 2023 or September 2023 amendments.

● Comprehensive reform of the High Council of Justice means effectively responding to persistent allegations of dishonesty of the High Council of Justice, revising its powers, functions, decision-making procedures and the manner in which members are elected.

● Minor or technical amendments to the law will not satisfy this recommendation. The reform process should be thorough and inclusive, involving all relevant stakeholders.

● The second key recommendation was to limit the broad powers of the High Council of Justice when judges are transferred or seconded to another court – this recommendation also remains unaddressed.

● The third recommendation was to revise the procedure for dismissal of judges. The Commission welcomes the changes and considers that this recommendation has been implemented.

● The fourth recommendation was to limit the grounds for disciplinary liability of a judge in relation to a judge’s violation of the principle of “political neutrality”. This recommendation has been partially implemented. However, if the proposals included in the draft amendments of September 2023 are adopted, these recommendations will be fairly consistent.

● The fifth recommendation was to strengthen the binding nature of Supreme Court decisions. This recommendation has been partially implemented, and an additional amendment may be made to explicitly provide that the High Council of Justice must abide by Supreme Court decisions rendered after appeal.

“The Commission welcomes some of the amendments adopted in June 2023 as well as those of September 2023, but notes that important previous recommendations have not yet been addressed. The Commission calls on the authorities to pursue the reform strategy without undue delay,” the opinion reads.

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• How the Georgian Judicial System Fell Under Western Sanctions
• Prime Minister of Georgia Irakli Garibashvili: I am proud of our court

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Comment from a lawyer

Guram Imnadze, Center for Social Justice: “The Venice Commission has published a very important assessment summarizing the legislative changes implemented in Georgian justice over the past year.

Before going directly to the content of the evaluation, I will say in general that the “language” of the Commission and the terminology used are becoming more and more clear, which minimizes the space for double interpretation or unfair reading of the text.

As for the content of the document, the Venice Commission actually shares all the criticism that local civil organizations have been voicing for years.

But for me, it is the language of the document that is most important. This assessment is so subtle and critical that if I were our legislators, I would be very ashamed of the statements in which we have been led to believe that they have done everything they could, that justice is all right and now only “bonus reforms” remain to be implemented.

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