Beso Alavidze is truly accusing; he has reached such a state. This topic was thrown out on the eve of the elections. I’m surprised by Beso’s hope that he’ll be there. I’m sorry, he seems somehow brainwashed to me. You’re a Supreme Court judge – what are you talking about, ‘they drove me to suicide,’ ‘they didn’t assign me cases’ – how can anyone not assign a case to a Supreme Court judge? Then what are you doing in the Supreme Court? – This is how Levan Murusidze, a judge member of the High Council of Justice, responded to Interpressnews regarding the statement made by Beso Alavidze, a former Supreme Court judge, about the judicial branch.
As Murusidze noted, in the video recording where Alavidze speaks about the judiciary, “everything is absurd,” and the recording was published three years later to coincide with the elections.
“What I said back then has proven true. Beso Alavidze, who claimed to be very principled and opposed to the so-called ‘clan,’ applied for the Supreme Court competition because he wanted to remain a Supreme Court judge. When he wasn’t appointed, he sought political asylum. Alavidze said, ‘I don’t want any asylum,’ but three years later, it turned out that he did everything to get asylum abroad. They used him for dirty PR against the judiciary and timed it for the elections, thinking it was the most advantageous moment to release the video from three years ago. His statement is absurd; it is not based on anything. He tells absurd things, like they locked him in a room, accuses women of something – imagine, someone detaining and locking up three Supreme Court judges in the Supreme Court building? This is absurd,” stated Murusidze.
According to his explanation, Besarion Alavidze also gave testimony to the prosecutor’s office three years ago that he had not experienced any pressure regarding any cases under consideration.
“He himself stated that there was no pressure. Three judges wrote a statement that there was no pressure regarding the ‘Rustavi 2’ case. Alavidze publicly declared that he had not experienced any pressure in any case; he even stated this to the prosecutor’s office. There is no talk of revenge against Alavdze because Beso Alavdze is not such a big figure that the world revolves around him. Now he needs to seek asylum and get involved in all sorts of dirty topics. When he says he wanted to undergo surgery, do you imagine any surgeon in Georgia whom you can approach and say, ‘I’m not sick with anything, but please, brother, perform surgery on me, cut me open’? Is that normal? He’s a Supreme Court judge – how could such a thing even cross his mind?” stated Murusidze.
Murusidze also called absurd the part of Alavidze’s statement where he claims that judges Levan Murusidze, Mikheil Chinchaladze, Valerian Tsertsvadze, and Vasil Roinishvili summoned him to a cafe and threatened him with “brain surgery.”
“You’re a Supreme Court judge saying they forcibly took you to a cafe – what forcibly? Did they throw you in the trunk of a car? I’ve met Beso Alavidze many times because we were colleagues, but I haven’t seen him for about 12 years now.
We extended his term by a few months when his 10-year term as a Supreme Court judge expired. He applied for the competition. He couldn’t answer legal questions, and then the Council decided he should no longer be a Supreme Court judge. If he thought we were criminals, bloodthirsty, drove him to suicide, why did he apply for the competition, or why didn’t he raise his voice before?
When he wasn’t appointed to the Supreme Court, he started going to embassies, meeting people, then gave an interview to Kakha Tsikarishvili, NGOs, those NGOs that were demanding the dismissal of non-diplomatic staff because of diplomatic issues,” stated Murusidze.
As a reminder, lawyer Kakha Tsikarishvili is publishing an interview with former Supreme Court judge Besarion Alavidze, where Alavidze discusses the pressure he experienced from the “clan” in the judicial system and the government to issue favorable rulings in specific cases. In the recording, the former Supreme Court judge mentions the following cases: the appropriation of Kibar Khalvashi for TV company “Rustavi 2,” the dispute over the Rustavi Metallurgical Plant between Joseph Kay and the Patarkatsishvili family, the dispute of the Erosi Kitsmarishvili family over shares in “Maestro,” and so on. He speaks about threats, offers of bribes, and even names specific individuals. In the recording, the judge discusses how he even considered suicide.
“I thought many times about climbing to the facade of the Supreme Court and jumping off with my judge’s robe on – so publicly. Let people see that a judge committed suicide, and everyone will understand the situation in the judiciary – I was under such pressure and stress,” Alavidze stated.
Levan Murusidze: Beso Alavidze is truly accusing, he has reached such a state – they used him for dirty PR against the judiciary and timed it for the elections
