Georgia refuses to allow former prisoners from Ukraine, who were forcibly transferred to Russian colonies, to enter its territory. 7 people have been living in the area of Zemo Lars border checkpoint for 14 days now. Russian publication Meduza broke the story based on the Volunteers Tbilisi organization, which supports Ukrainian refugees in Georgia.
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According to the volunteers of the organization, the men tried to cross the border for the first time on October 11 but were denied entry, citing the need to receive clearance from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine. It should be noted that only four of the 7 people have Ukrainian passports on hand, and the other three only have certificates of release from Russian colonies.
The men have to sleep on the floor at the border checkpoint, with food and water being brought to them by volunteers.
All seven served their sentences in the Kherson colonies. In the fall of 2022, when the Russian armed forces withdrew from Kherson, they were transferred to the Russian Federation. In 2022, 2,500 prisoners in total were transferred from Kherson to the territory of Russia.
According to one of the men, after their release, they were placed in the Volgograd deportation center, where they were handed a decree banning them from entering the Russian Federation for eight years.
One of the former prisoners says that he self-harmed as a sign of protest. He received medical care and is currently in a stable condition. ‘‘We are all citizens of Ukraine and we just want to return home’’, said one of the Ukrainians.
This is not the first time Georgia has refused to let former Ukrainian prisoners into its territory. In late August, a group of six Ukrainians spent ten days at the Zemo Lars checkpoint.
