“The information that was released is shocking. There is talk of once again banning the bringing of communication devices, namely phones, into court hearings — this takes us back to where we were before 2012,” said lawyer and founder of the “House of Justice,” Eka Beselia, on PalitraNews’ program “360 Degrees.”

According to Beselia, the court is not a private corporation that can close itself off and hide, as the openness of the process is directly tied to its credibility.

“Today, a phone is not just a communication device; it contains a lot of information and is an essential work tool. For example, I do most of my work on my phone.

In a situation where transparency and openness of court proceedings are the first indicators of how fair the judicial process is, now they’re reportedly announcing a tender to purchase court infrastructure to store phones during hearings — this would completely deprive the media of the ability to work. It also poses risks for participants in the process. This takes us back to where we were before 2012.

I myself was one of the initiators of the positive reforms — since 2013, we opened the courts to the media and restored the essential elements needed for public proceedings. The openness of court processes is linked to credibility. A court is not a private corporation that can shut itself away and hide. It serves the country and the people, and citizens must have confidence that justice is being done,” Beselia said.

When asked whether she rules out the possibility that the Prosecutor’s Office might also target Georgia’s fifth president, Salome Zurabishvili, Beselia said there is no legal basis for such action.

“There is no legal ground for prosecuting Salome Zurabishvili. If they are driven by personal revenge and act on that basis, such actions will be called out openly and clearly,” Beselia stated.