“I already answered that question in Parliament. According to the Istanbul International Protocol, [detainees are required to undress in the isolator],” – this is how the Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs, Aleksandre Darakhvelidze, responded to Batumelebi’s question about why citizens are being stripped in pre-trial detention isolators.

Aleksandre Darakhvelidze is attending an international seminar in Batumi titled “Port Security and the Fight Against Drug Trafficking from the Black Sea to the European Union.”

Batumelebi also asked the “Georgian Dream” deputy minister about violent and unlawful detentions.

“Police detain all individuals who violate the law,” says Aleksandre Darakhvelidze.

On November 24, police detained eight demonstrators at a protest rally in Tbilisi. Police did not explain the reasons for their detention.

The detentions began after citizens, who had gathered in front of Parliament as usual, began a peaceful march toward Freedom Square.

During the march, police detained four people on the sidewalks. After the arrests, some participants decided to return to Parliament, at which point several more people were detained.

Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs Aleksandre Darakhvelidze maintains that police detain only those who break the law.

“Accordingly, these individuals are presented before the court, and everyone can see that there is sufficient evidence to recognize these specific individuals as offenders. We have all witnessed numerous cases in which the court made a decision and a person was found to have committed an offense, receiving a fine or another type of penalty,” Darakhvelidze said. He is attending the seminar on port security in Batumi.

Asked how the detention of someone sitting on a bench or walking on a sidewalk can be lawful, Darakhvelidze responded:

“For every detention, evidence is presented before the court, it is examined in an open court hearing, and afterwards you can see that these individuals are recognized as offenders. Therefore, the fact is clear: the court saw and determined that the evidence we presented was fully sufficient for these individuals to be recognized as having committed an offense,” Darakhvelidze said.

A video shows how police respond to citizens asking why they are not allowed to walk on the sidewalk.