Georgia: Law of 1997 on Declaration of Citizens of Georgia as Victims of Political Repression and on Social Protection of the Repressed

Chapter I. General Provisions

Article 1

1.         The present Law determines the concepts of a political repression and victim of political repression, establishes the procedure of declaring a victim of political repression and the guarantees for social protection of the repressed.

2.         This Law is applied to the citizens of Georgia who were subjected to the political repression on the territory of Georgia from February 25,1921 until October 28,1990.

3.         This Law shall not be applied to the persons referred to the ethnic groups deported within the period from February 25,1921 until October 28,1998 the procedure of rehabilitation of whom will be determined separately.

Article 2

The following different forms of compulsion are deemed as political repression-violence to the life, injuring, confinement, forcible displacement, settlement, expiration, forcible placement in psychiatric institutions, deprivation of citizenship, forced labour, seizure of property, sending to the special settlements for residence, eviction from dwelling, as well as other restriction of human rights and liberties guaranteed under the law, those executed by the state by political motives through the judgements of court or decision of other authorities, and those connected with faked accusation of commitment of crime, person's political views or making resistance against the illegal action of the existed political regime, with the social, positional or religious belonging as well as the forms of coercion executed by the state as those mentioned in Article 4 of this Law.

Article 3

A victim of political repression is:

a)person who was directly subjected to political repression;

b)a spouse, child (adopted child), parent and another direct kin of the victim of political repression who stayed with the latter at places of confinement, forcible displacement, in the settlement, places of special settlement.

Article 4

1.         A person convicted for the following crimes shall be deemed as the victim of political repression:

a)anti-soviet and counterrevolutionary agitation and propaganda;

b)violation of the law on separation the Church from the State and the School from the Church;

c)deliberate dissemination of false rumors undermining the state and public system;

d)escape from the places of corrective labour settlement, special settlement if a person stayed there in result of the political repression;

e)encroachment upon human rights and liberties by motive of execution of rites of worship.

2.         A person committed under the false accusation due to his political views, making resistance to the illegal action of the existed political regime, due to social, positional or religious belonging shall be deemed as the victim of political repression.

3.         A person sentenced by "GPU-OGPU", "VCHK", "UNKVD-NKVD", "MGB", "KGB", "MVD", by the extraordinary councils, the "two-men", and "three-men", commissions as well as a person forcibly displaced, placed or sent to the special settlement is deemed as the victim of political repression.

Article 5

1.         A person sentenced by the court for the following crimes will not be deemed as the victim of political repression:

a)violation to the human life or health not connected with his persecution on political grounds as well as other violence offered against civil population or POWs;

b)other crimes against humanity;

c)gangsterism.

2.         The rule stipulated by item 1 of this Article is not applied to that person who was subjected to repression as a member of criminal's family.

Article 6

Declaration of a person as the victim of political repression and restoration of his violated rights in conditions determined by this Law takes place by the court.

Chapter II Procedure and Consequences of Declaration as a Victim of Political Repression

Article 7.

1.         Application for declaration as a victim of political repression shall be submitted directly by a person subjected to repression or his/her representative.

2.         Consideration of application for declaration as a victim of political repression takes place in accordance with the procedure established by this Law and Civil Law of Proceedings.

3.         Application for declaration as a victim of political repression is exempted from the state duty.

Article 8.

1.         The person declared as a victim of political repression will be restored with all political, civil and other rights and liberties, military and special ranks violated in result of political repression, will be returned with governmental rewards withdrawn in result of political repression, he/she will be granted with privileges in accordance with the rule established by this Law.

2.         If a person is declared as the victim of political repression only in a part of the charged accusation s/he will be restored with only those rights which were violated in connection with the political charge.

3.         The procedure of restoration of the proprietary rights of the rehabilitated person shall be determined by the law separately.

Article 9

A person subjected to repression in kind of sending to the places of confinement, forcible displacement, settlement, special settlement or forcible placing in psychiatric institutions and declared as the victim of political repression may be given the money compensation, the amount and rule of payment of which shall be established by the law.

Article 10.

The certificate on declaration as the victim of political repression approved by the Decree of President of Georgia shall be given directly to the repressed person and in case of his/her death to his/her legal successor.

Article 11.

1.         The person declared as a victim of political repression, or another person authorized by s/he or, in case of his/her death, his/her spouse, brother, sister, parent, child, other direct kin, is entitled to look through the materials or his/her criminal or administrative case, to get the copies of documents of not-proceeding nature in accordance with the procedure and in limits established by the law.

2.         The person declared as a victim of political repression and his/her successors are entitled to restitute his/her private records, documents and personal things filed I n the case.

Chapter III Guarantees of Social Protection of Victim of Political Repression

Article 12

1.         A person declared as the victim of political repression who, in result of political repression stayed in places of confinement, special settlement, psychiatric institution, place of forcible displacement as well as his/her spouse and incapable child (adopted child) are granted with the following rights and privileges:

a)compulsory medical insurance at the government expense;

b)discount payment, in amount of 50%, for rent and communal services (heating, water, refuse taking away, gas, electric-and heat power, radio, telephone, except long-distance calls, collective antennae) at the expense of the government, if such services are provided by the government institution. Privileges in payment of rent shall be established for the person residing in public houses;

c)providing prosthetic and orthopaedic articles at the government expense;

d)providing slips for free carrying by public transport, by the public welfare bodies in accordance with the established rule;

e)priority to keep the working place in case of reduction in staff at state or local administration institutions notwithstanding the length of work;

f)free public legal consultations and release from legal costs in cases related to the declaration as a victim of political repression.

2.         A person declared as victim of political repression who stayed in petentiaries, exile, special settlements, psychiatric institution and his/her spouse will be given a monthly pension in amount of 50 lari notwithstanding the length of service.

Chapter IV Conclusive Provisions

Article 13

1.         This Law to be effective on January 1,1998.

2.         Items (b-d) of Clause 1 of Article 12 of the Law shall be effective on January 1, 1999.

3.         The person rehabilitated before the putting into force of this Law shall be granted with privileges and rights provided for persons declared as victim of political repression under this Law.

4.         The decision on restitution, indemnification or money compensation passed by the appropriate authorities before the putting of this Law into force shall not be subject to review.

5.         From the effective date of this Law to deem null and void the Decree of the State Council of the Republic of Georgia "On Restoration of Justice in Respect of Persons Subjected to Repression for Participation in the Georgian National-Liberation Movement in 1921-1924" of May 25, 1992 (Collection of Normative Acts of the State Council of the Republic of Georgia, 1992, vol. 1, Art. 55)