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Urgent call on transferring Mikheil Saakashvili, the third President of Georgia for treatment abroad

Motion for a resolution | Doc. 15699 | 30 January 2023

Signatories:
Ms Khatia DEKANOIDZE, Georgia, EPP/CD ; Ms Boriana ÅBERG, Sweden, EPP/CD ; Mr Knut ABRAHAM, Germany, EPP/CD ; Mr Lulzim BASHA, Albania, EPP/CD ; Ms Deborah BERGAMINI, Italy, NR ; Mr Marek BOROWSKI, Poland, EPP/CD ; Ms Karin BROUWERS, Belgium, EPP/CD ; Ms Zdravka BUŠIĆ, Croatia, EPP/CD ; Mr Corneliu-Mugurel COZMANCIUC, Romania, EPP/CD ; Mr Rik DAEMS, Belgium, ALDE ; Ms Marie-Christine DALLOZ, France, EPP/CD ; Ms Natalia DAVIDOVICI, Republic of Moldova, EPP/CD ; Ms Andrea EDER-GITSCHTHALER, Austria, EPP/CD ; Mr Franz Leonhard ESSL, Austria, EPP/CD ; Ms Dubravka FILIPOVSKI, Serbia, EPP/CD ; Lord George FOULKES, United Kingdom, SOC ; Mr Bernard FOURNIER, France, EPP/CD ; Mr Georg GEORGIEV, Bulgaria, NR ; Mr Oleksii GONCHARENKO, Ukraine, EC/DA ; Mr Gustaf GÖTHBERG, Sweden, EPP/CD ; Ms Sylvie GOY-CHAVENT, France, EPP/CD ; Mr Ion GROZA, Republic of Moldova, EPP/CD ; Mr Max HENGEL, Luxembourg, EPP/CD ; Ms Els van HOOF, Belgium, EPP/CD ; Ms Zanda KALNIŅA-LUKAŠEVICA, Latvia, EPP/CD ; Mr Yuriy KAMELCHUK, Ukraine, EPP/CD ; Ms Elvira KOVÁCS, Serbia, EPP/CD ; Ms Yevheniia KRAVCHUK, Ukraine, ALDE ; Mr Eerik-Niiles KROSS, Estonia, ALDE ; Ms Carmen LEYTE, Spain, EPP/CD ; Mr Arminas LYDEKA, Lithuania, ALDE ; Ms María Valentina MARTÍNEZ FERRO, Spain, EPP/CD ; Ms Mariia MEZENTSEVA, Ukraine, EPP/CD ; Mr Alain MILON, France, EPP/CD ; Ms Octavie MODERT, Luxembourg, EPP/CD ; Ms Mariella MULARONI, San Marino, EPP/CD ; Ms Ria OOMEN-RUIJTEN, Netherlands, EPP/CD ; Ms Biljana PANTIĆ PILJA, Serbia, EPP/CD ; Mr Aleksander POCIEJ, Poland, EPP/CD ; Mr Mihail POPSOI, Republic of Moldova, EPP/CD ; Ms Catarina dos SANTOS-WINTZ, Germany, EPP/CD ; Ms Ingjerd SCHOU, Norway, EPP/CD ; Ms Nathalie SERRE, France, EPP/CD ; Mr David SMOLJAK, Czech Republic, NR ; Ms Petra STIENEN, Netherlands, ALDE ; Mr Davor Ivo STIER, Croatia, EPP/CD ; Mr Ionuț-Marian STROE, Romania, EPP/CD ; Mr Volker ULLRICH, Germany, EPP/CD ; Mr Sergiy VLASENKO, Ukraine, EPP/CD ; Ms Yelyzaveta YASKO, Ukraine, EPP/CD ; Mr Emanuelis ZINGERIS, Lithuania, EPP/CD

The continuous deterioration of the health of Mikheil Saakashvili, the third President of Georgia and a citizen of Ukraine, continues to fuel polarisation in Georgia and is in direct contradiction with recommendations 1, 2, 3, and 7 of the European Commission in its 2022 opinion on the EU membership application by Georgia.

In its Resolution 2463 (2022), the Parliamentary Assembly called “for a review of cases of other political prisoners opposed to President Putin, in the Russian Federation, and in other countries, and for their release (including Mikheil Saakashvili, who is a Ukrainian citizen and former President of Georgia).”

The health of President Saakashvili continues to deteriorate in detention. The Forensic Experts Commission of the Empathy Center with the participation of 10 Georgian and 6 international experts performed a forensic medical examination, in accordance with the principles of the Istanbul Protocol, and international and national healthcare legislation. The examinee has more than 20 diagnoses or sets of symptoms, of which about 10 diagnoses are leading and are incompatible with imprisonment. Evaluations done by the group of doctors of the Public Defender of Georgia and by an independent group of US-based medical experts have confirmed that the life of the former President is in danger in Georgia and have strongly recommended his immediate transfer to the United States or Europe for treatment.

In light of these considerations, the Government of Georgia should be called upon to allow for the urgent transfer of President Saakashvili abroad for medical treatment.

Furthermore, Georgia and all its political forces should be called upon to assume their responsibilities and work to ensure the fulfilment of the recommendations and thus ensure a path forward for Georgia’s European integration.