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Anti-government protests broke out after the video was aired on national TV
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Video footage showing prisoners being abused by guards in Georgia has triggered anti-government protests in the country.

Uniformed officers in Tbilisi's jail are seen severely beating inmates and sexually assaulting one with a broom.

The minister in charge of prisons was forced to offer her resignation after the film was aired on national TV.

The ruling party said the video was staged by the opposition to discredit the government ahead of key elections.

For critics, though, this is graphic proof that the authorities' tough approach to crime has become unaccountable and heavy-handed, the BBC's Damien McGuinness in Tbilisi reports.

Anger and shock
The film showing abuse in the Gldani prison No. 8 was broadcast on TV on Tuesday.

It triggered overnight protests in Tbilisi and also in the southern city of Batumi, Georgian media say.


President Saakashvili's party faces a tough challenge in October's elections
In the capital, angry protesters demanded the resignation of Khatuna Kalmakhelidze, the minister in charge of prisons.

On Wednesday, Ms Kalmahelidze said she had decided to step down because her efforts to protect human rights in prisons had "proved insufficient".

President Mikheil Saakashvili expressed his anger and shock over the TV footage, promising to punish those responsible.

It has long been suspected that prisoners in Georgia are mistreated, our correspondent says.
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http://www.hrw.org/news/2012/09/19/georgia...al-abuse-prison

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Georgia: Investigate Sexual Abuse in Prison
Graphic Video Material Points to Need for Accountability

SEPTEMBER 19, 2012


© 2012 Human Rights Watch
The abuse captured in this footage is profoundly disturbing. The authorities need to ensure full accountability—including criminal accountability—for this abuse and take measures to prevent it from ever happening again.
Giorgi Gogia, senior Europe and Central Asia researcher
(Berlin) – Video footage broadcast on Georgian television on September 18, 2012, depicts sexual and other abuse of inmates in a notorious prison in Georgia, which should be subject to criminal investigation, Human Rights Watch said today. The government of Georgia should conduct a prompt, thorough, and independent investigation into the abuse, hold those found responsible accountable, and ensure the victims a remedy.

A Georgian corrections official stated publicly that the head of the penitentiary department has been dismissed as a result of the abuse and that several other officials have been arrested. Acts of a criminal nature, such as assault and including sexual assault, should be subject to criminal investigations and prosecutions, and not simply disciplinary sanctions, Human Rights Watch said.

“The abuse captured in this footage is profoundly disturbing,” said Giorgi Gogia, senior Europe and Central Asia researcher at Human Rights Watch. “The authorities need to ensure full accountability—including criminal accountability—for this abuse and take measures to prevent it from ever happening again.”