The footage showing police violence in Gori is extremely disturbing. This is what happens when accountability for cases of torture and physical abuse committed by police officers is merely superficial, wrote Tamar Oniani, Chairperson of the Georgian Young Lawyers' Association, on social media, responding to the incident in Gori.

According to Oniani, impunity always has a chain reaction, and therefore such incidents involving law enforcement representatives can no longer be considered accidental.

“The Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia has launched an investigation, but let us look at the issue more deeply. Because for years the systemic problem has been the existence of only formal investigations by the Prosecutor’s Office into cases of police violence, there was a clear call to create a separate specialized investigative service. This was achieved after more than 20 cases were brought before the European Court of Human Rights (see the Tsintsabadze group judgments).

In 2025, when this service was abolished, what indicator existed to prove that it was no longer necessary?

The primary function of the Special Investigative Service was precisely to fight police violence. Its abolition has further strengthened the sense of impunity.

That is why, when we bring such cases before the Strasbourg Court, we also challenge this institutional deterioration,” Oniani wrote.

For context, in Gori’s so-called Kombinati settlement, two individuals were physically assaulted by a group of law enforcement officers. Footage of the incident was circulated on social media by “Kartli News.” The Prosecutor’s Office has launched an investigation into alleged abuse of power involving police violence.