Kavelashvili pardoned 70 convicts

On the occasion of Svetitskhovloba holiday, Georgian President Mikheil Kavelashvili pardoned 70 convicts.

As reported by the " Caucasian Knot ," in January, Georgia's sixth president, Mikheil Kavelashvili, pardoned 613 prisoners on the occasion of the Epiphany of the Lord . In April, Kavelashvili pardoned 33 people on the occasion of Easter.

In connection with Svetitskhovloba holiday, Mikheil Kavelashvili pardoned 70 people, the presidential press service reported today.

According to the report, the pardon affected 24 people sentenced to real terms, 42 people given suspended sentences, and another four had their convictions expunged, Interpressnews writes.

The Christian holiday of Svetitskhovloba is celebrated in Georgia on October 14. It is a public holiday and an official day off, Novosti-Gruzia reported today.

The name of the Svetitskhoveli Cathedral translates as "life-giving pillar." This cathedral in the city of Mtskheta is one of the largest architectural monuments in Georgia. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. According to legend, the cathedral was built on the burial site of the Lord's Tunic, the publication reports.

As a reminder, Georgia's fifth president,  Salome Zurabishvili, also regularly issued pardons, including in connection with Christian holidays. Thus, on August 4, 2024, she pardoned 22 prisoners, 17 on August 26, and another 11 on November 11 .

A moratorium on pardons was in effect in Georgia from August 2019 to January 2020. It was imposed after Ramaz Devadze, sentenced to 15 years for the murder of a police officer, was included among those pardoned by the president. The decision to pardon Devadze was criticized not only by the opposition but also by members of the ruling Georgian Dream party.

On January 6, 2020, when the moratorium was lifted, Zurabishvili pardoned five people. This outraged human rights activists , who pointed out that hundreds of prisoners had been awaiting pardon.

Translated automatically via Google translate from https://www.kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/416305