Three Rally Participants in Chiatura Charged, Facing Up To 3 Years in Prison

None of the defendants agree with the charges presented against them. Vladimer Kutateladze, the lawyer from the Civic Center, says that the defendants are requesting to be released without a preventive measure, while the Prosecutor's Office is requesting bail in the amount of 2000 GEL for each of them.

"The police are using repressive measures to stop this action," the lawyer said.

"Since March 2024, Giorgi Neparidze, Malkhaz Labadze, and Roman Megrelishvili, along with other individuals, organized a group rally and picketed the underground mines of Korokhnali and Shukruti, owned by Magharoeli LLC. Specifically, they positioned themselves in front of the mine entrances, preventing workers from entering and working in the mines. On July 21, 2024, between 07:25 and 08:00, Giorgi Neparidze, Malkhaz Labadze, and Roman Megrelishvili closed the entrance metal door to the area with a metal wire, chain, and padlock after the driver of the ventilation system exited the yard of the ventilation building of the Shukruti mine. As a result, the duty driver for the new shift was not allowed to enter the building, and this situation continues as of July 31, 2024.

through their actions, they intentionally disrupted the operation of the ventilation system, which is vital to the functioning of the underground mines. This disruption could lead to the rotting of fastening materials in the mines, damage to electrical equipment, collapse of mining masses, and the paralysis of the entire underground mining operation," the indictment states.

Roman Megrelishvili, who has 20 years of experience working in the mine, says that the ventilation system near the Korokhnali mine removes polluted air accumulated during explosions or ore mining. He argues that since the mine is not currently operational, turning off the ventilation does not pose a danger to anyone. Additionally, the part of the tunnel served by this system is made of concrete, so there is no risk of the fastening material rotting.

"They needed this reason only to present this absurd charge. Their goal is to disperse this rally and stop us from standing here," Roman Megrelishvili says.

Based on the case materials, the Chiatura police began an investigation on March 14, 2024, regarding the disruption of operations at the mine owned by Georgian Manganese. The investigator interviewed the drivers of the ventilation system, who testified that the protesting women had warned them not to turn on the ventilation, stating that they planned to hold a continuous protest until their demands were met.

"In the morning, we turn off the ventilation for an hour to cool it down. During that time, one of the women came to me - she lives in Shukruti village, but I don't know her name. In a categorical tone, she told me not to turn on the ventilation because we are organizing a strike and protest. There were other women and men with her, but this woman was the most active. I didn't say anything, didn't agree, and didn't object. I informed the Shukruti mine dispatcher about this situation," Lela Chachanidze says in her testimony dated March 14.

The investigator summoned several participants of the rally, including Vera Kupatadze, for questioning at the police station. However, the residents of Shukruti stated they would testify only before the magistrate judge, and the investigator did not question them in court.

For four months, until July 21, the investigation made no progress. On July 21, Konstantine Vashadze, the assistant to the director of the contractor company Georgian Manganese - Magharoeli LLC, informed the police that the ventilation system at the Shukruti mine was turned off, putting people in danger. In reality, there were no miners in the tunnel at the time, and no one was in danger of health or life. On July 20, the company attempted to bring some employees into the mine area. To counter the rally, other citizens were brought in, who confronted the protest participants, but the rally continued.

For 142 days, more than 30 families living in Shukruti have gathered near the Korokhnali mine. Their sole request is for the company to report the damages caused to these residents as a result of manganese mining to the National Bureau of Forensic Expertise, rather than to its own audit, and to compensate them accordingly. The company has provided some advance payments to several families but without an evaluation by the Bureau of Expertise. The company had promised in 2021 that the experts from the Samkharauli Bureau would assess the damage caused to the locals, following a long protest in which the residents of Shukruti had sewn their mouths shut. According to Giorgi Neparidze, a rally participant, the Forensic Examination Bureau experts did visit Shukruti at that time and prepared a report, but Georgian Manganese has not made the document public. Neparidze claims that the loss described in the report and the proposed compensation amount are significantly higher than those determined by the company's audit, which is why Georgian Manganese is hiding the report. The rally participants have demanded that the report be handed over to the Bureau of Expertise, but the company has refused, explaining that the document is only available to the customer. Several participants of the rally have been fired by the heads of subcontractor companies of Georgian Manganese.