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PRESS-RELEASE
Procès contre le ministère de la justice de Géorgie pour refus
d’homologation d’un avocat français
Version française ci-joint à ce mail
ARMENIAN AND Russian version attached
May 2, 2009
The First Court Hearing in the Case of Refusal to Register the French
Lawyer Patrick ArapIan will be held in Tbilisi on May 7, 2009
On May 7, 2009 the first hearing in the case of refusal by the
Ministry of Justice to register Patrick Arapian, a French lawyer and a
member of the Paris Bar, as a court defender of Javakheti political
activist Vahagn Chakhalyan will be held at Tbilisi City Court for
Administrative Cases.
The Chakhalyans’ interest in this case will be represented by Nino
Andriashvili, a lawyer of the Georgian non-governmental organization
`The Human Rights Centre (HRIDC)’ seeking to protect and promote human
rights and basic freedoms in Georgia.
On February 16, 2009, the Ministry of Justice of Georgia, without
providing any explanation refused to register Mr. Arapian as defender
of Vahagn Chahalyan in the ongoing trial. The Ombudsman of Georgia
Sozar Subari, in his letter addressed to the Minister of Justice
Z. Adeishvili recommended that the latter should restore the violated
rights of the Chahalyans family and allow the participation of the
French lawyer, but the Georgian authorities ignored this
recommendation.
At the demonstrations in defense of Vahagn Chakhalyan that took place
in Paris on April 14 and 28, the Ambassador of Georgia to France
Mamuka Kudava received the organizers of the protest action and
promised that the Georgian authorities would give a positive solution
to the question of registration of Patrick Arapian.
YERKIR Union