MOSCOW, December 18 (RIA Novosti) – More than 900 inmates went on hunger strike in a western Georgian prison because the country indefinitely postponed the creation of a commission to improve the justice system, a senior official said Wednesday.
A group of those prisoners also demands the abolishment of amendments to the article of the Georgian Criminal Code that imposes punishments for membership in an armed gang.
Lawyers and human rights activists have widely criticized the article’s new text, saying its wording is too vague and might be abused.
“The government has already responded to those who went on a hunger strike over the commission issue. This problem is being solved,” said the minister of corrections and legal assistance, Sozar Subari.
“But there’s no point in a hunger strike over Article 223 because there will be no change in our policy. I tell this to you frankly, seriously and clearly – this is the government’s decision,” he said.
