“I want to address the prosecutors and you [the judge] – from my side, I forgive what you have been doing to me for so long,” said actor Andro Chichinadze, who was detained on charges of participating in group violence during protests near Parliament, in his final statement at the court.
As Andro Chichinadze noted, one may encounter many injustices in life, but this should not lead to losing faith in humanity and people.
“I want to address the prosecutors and you [the judge] – this is my opinion, and I speak only for myself, as I have no right to speak for others. From my side, I forgive what you have been doing to me for so long. I don’t use the word ‘we’ because I don’t have the right to. Most likely, the other guys have different opinions.
However, this forgiveness comes with a request – you have taken on very bad cases during this time. We understand that you are the tool, not the decision-maker, but the request is this: stop taking on cases that involve imprisoning people like us. This applies to you too, Your Honor…
It may be my perception, but I’ve been observing you for so long, and I see that you don’t particularly enjoy what you’re doing. This applies least to Mr. Vakhtang [one of the prosecutors] and more to Mr. Vazha [another prosecutor]…
You may face many injustices in life, and this should not lead to losing faith in people and humanity. This request stems from that. Every person has a chance to correct, in some way and in the future, what they have allowed in one form or another,” Chichinadze stated.
According to him, “not a single victim or eyewitness said that my actions caused harm.”
“Not a single victim or eyewitness said that my actions caused harm, let alone posed a threat to anyone. Such a person doesn’t exist… I won’t say anything about the group charge – it’s fabricated,” Chichinadze noted.
He also stated that Georgia has never had an independent judiciary, and everyone who could has misused this institution.
“The peak of this was under the previous government. This government started well in reforming this institution, but in the end, it continued exactly what was happening before. Today, the court is capable of making inadequate decisions… In the first three pre-trial detention hearings, the judges made completely baseless decisions. What influence on witnesses or risk of reoffending are they talking about? The risk of absconding was dismissed from the start, though all three reasons would have been irrelevant… How could I influence witnesses when the prosecution was doing that? Can you theoretically imagine that 40 people who didn’t know each other all had the same idea in their heads?” Chichinadze noted, as reported by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty in his final statement.
Andro Chichinadze to the judge and prosecutors: I forgive you for what you have done to me over all these years; My request is that you no longer take on cases where you will participate in sending such people to prison
