The Public Defender of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს სახალხო დამცველი, tr), an

ombudsman An ombudsman ( , also ) is a government employee who investigates and tries to resolve complaints, usually through recommendations (binding or not) or mediation. They are usually appointed by the government or by parliament (often with a sign ...

, is an institution that oversees the observance of human rights and freedoms in

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

. It advises the government on human rights issues. It also analyses the nation's laws, policies, and practices, in compliance with the international standards, and provides relevant recommendations.

Creation and rules

The Public Defender of Georgia is elected for a term of six years, for no more than one consecutive term, by a majority of at least 3/5 of the total number of the members of the

Parliament of Georgia The Parliament of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს პარლამენტი, tr) is the supreme national legislature of Georgia. It is a unicameral parliament, currently consisting of 150 members elected through fully pr ...

. The office was established in accordance with the 1996 Organic Law on the Public Defender of Georgia. Any obstruction of the activities of the Public Defender is punishable by law. The Constitution of Georgia grants some immunity to the Public Defender; they can be arrested only with the consent of Parliament, except if caught red-handed at a crime scene.

2000s

The public defender of Georgia took action against torture, which used to be widespread in Georgia's police stations, leading to a dramatic reduction in its occurrence in the mid-

2000s File:2000s decade montage3.png, From top left, clockwise: The Twin Towers of the original World Trade Center (1973–2001), World Trade Center on fire and the Statue of Liberty on the left during the September 11 attacks, terrorist attacks on Sep ...

. Aspects of its program that were deemed effective in reducing torture included accepting anonymous complaints and making frequent surprise visits to places of detention.

List of Public Defenders of Georgia

* Davit Saralidze (დავით სალარიძე), 27 October 1997 – 1 September 2000 * Nana Devdariani (ნანა დევდარიანი), 1 September 2000 – 1 September 2003 * Temur Lomsadze (თემურ ლომსაძე; ''acting''), 1 September 2003 – 16 September 2004 *

Sozar Subari Sozar Subari ( ka, სოზარ სუბარი, ) (born November 4, 1964) is a Georgia (country), Georgian politician, journalist, and former human rights activist. He was formerly Georgia's Ministry of Internally Displaced Persons from th ...

(სოზარ სუბარი), 16 September 2004 – 17 September 2009 * Giorgi Tugushi (გიორგი ტუღუში), 17 September 2009 – 20 September 2012 * Ucha Nanuashvili (უჩა ნანუაშვილი), 7 December 2012 – 30 November 2017 * Nino Lomjaria (ნინო ლომჯარია), 30 November 2017 – 8 December 2022 * Tamar Gvaramadze (თამარ გვარამაძე; ''acting''), 8 December 2022 – 7 March 2023 * Levan Ioseliani (ლევან იოსელიანი), 7 March 2023 – present

References

{{reflist Ombudsman posts Human rights in Georgia (country) Political office-holders in Georgia (country) 1996 establishments in Georgia (country) Government agencies established in 1996