OSCE and the U.S. Government to donate books and library furniture to prisons in Georgia

TBILISI, 24 January 2007 - Inmates at the Rustavi Prison 6 near Tbilisi now have access to a range of legal and educational literature, library furniture and physical training equipment, donated today by the OSCE and funded by the United States.

The donation is part of a package of assistance supporting the Georgian Government's prison reform programme.

"Successful re-socialization and reintegration of detainees is one of the key objectives of prison and criminal justice reform in Georgia and throughout the OSCE area," said Ambassador Roy Reeve, Head of the OSCE mission to Georgia. "We are pleased to support initiatives that directly benefit the prisoners."

Ambassador Reeve and the Head of the U.S. Embassy in Tbilisi, Ambassador John Tefft, delivered the items intended for several prisons to Justice Minister Gia Kavtaradze, and the head of the Department of Prisons, Bacho Akhalaia.

"Protecting prisoners' rights and ensuring their humane treatment is an important part of Georgia's effort to rebuild its penal system and consolidate its democratic reforms," said Ambassador Tefft. "This donation of books and other items signifies my Government's interest in the well-being of Georgia's prisoners."

The donation was organized by the OSCE Mission to Georgia and funded by the U.S. Delegation to the OSCE through a programme of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights.

Ambassador Reeve added: "The donation is part of a package of assistance offered to the Justice Ministry in the key areas of reform: staff professionalism and treatment of detainees. The Mission also has helped train prison staff and provided expertise for the Justice Ministry."