Human Rights Center Protests Physical Abusing of Journalist Saba Tsitsikashvili

According to Human Rights Center, their correspondent Saba Tsitsikashvili was physically abused by security guards of Shida Kartli region's Administration.

According to the organization, the incident took place on January 22 when the journalist went to the Administration building in order to retrieve public information that he had demanded several days earlier.

Human Rights Center notes that Head of Administration Zurab Limidze spotted Tsitsikashvili from his window and he gestured to the journalist indicating that he was going to meet him.

Human Rights Center publishes Saba Tsitsikashvili's account of the incident: "Although it was already noon the service that issues special passes necessary for entering the buidling wasn't working, there were no security guards at the entrance too; therefore I started to move to the stairs leading to the second floor of the building. All of a sudden security guards appeared from one of the corners of the lobby and stood before me. They asked me where I was going to. I told them I had some business in the Chancellery and continued on my way.

With one of the guards I had a conflict in September 2009, he threw me out of the building then; this time he again ordered me to stop, another one clutched my arm and didn't let me go - he was saying to me: listen to what you're being told and stop! I asked them to remember their obligations, extricated my arm and moved towards the stairs again.

I told one of them (the one who had physically abused me before and threw me out of the building) that apparently he was so brazen because he wasn't punished for his previous conduct and advised him to treat journalists properly. He started to swear, then he pushed me towards the metal-plastic door and down the stairs, afterwards he and other guards pushed me out of the building.

By the way after Security Police started to guard the Administration building (from autumn 2008), Vice-governor Zurab Chinchilakashvili told the security guards that he didn't want to see me inside the building ever! The police were following that order diligently enough. I have filmed lots of evidence of their "diligent" work. For example when I was covering the local residents' protest rally the police were trying to destroy my camera etc. After Zurab Chinchilakashvili was fired I had no problem accessing the Administration building. Other security guards were telling me in private that I didn't need to take special passes and that I could access the building without any problem.

Situation suddenly changed from December 15 when Shida Kartli Governor met ambassadors and representatives of nongovernmental organizations in order to present report concerning the work conducted in 2009. The same day newspaper Kartlis Khma was published, the newspaper featured my article concerning the Governor's bonuses and other benefits that he was receiving from the budget. I distributed the newspaper among the ambassadors and representatives of nongovernmental organizations 10 minutes before Governor Vardzelashvili's appearance, that fact irritated the officials. After that article was published I had considerable problems accessing the Administration building, whereas due to the fact that all the significant government offices are situated in that building I need to go there regularly in order to receive and check important pieces of information".

Human Rights Center protests against the above-mentioned fact and demands that law-enforcement bodies punish the culprits. On January 26 a special press-conference will be held in the office of Human Rights Center dedicated to that incident.