Osset hostages tell how Georgian policemen “made” drug addicts out of them

Evidences of Sosaln Siukaev taken hostage by the Georgian police on July 20, 2008

“On Saturday (July 20) I was in the village Dmenis on public liturgy. Approximately at 16.00 the bus Dmenis-Tskhinval was returning to Tskhinval. When we reached the village Pris, the Georgian policemen stopped the bus and began to check the documents”.

They checked my passport and passed by. Not finishing the checking other staff-members of police came, they began to demand my passport. I told them that I had already been checked, but they answered that they had been called by the chief of the Ered police and that they wanted to check me once again. They took my passport and asked me to go along with them.

They told me to go with them to the police department allegedly because there was one Osset who had had a car accident, that he did not speak Georgian and I had to be present on his interrogation. A young fellow followed me, he had a funeral mark on his chest. He was also asked to come along with us. He was acquainted with the police staff-member, that’s why he trusted him. But his wife and several relatives run after him. They began to cry saying that they would not let him go with us, because they did not trust to the Georgian police. When the latters saw that it became too dangerous, they let the fellow go.

But I was told that I had to follow them. They got me onto the car and drove to the Eredvi police department – there was no Osset there who had had an accident. I asked where the Osset was who needed help. I stood in the police yard, I alerted by the fact that police members became to watch me. I felt that something was wrong, that I had been deceived. I began to look around searching the opportunity to run away. But the policemen were young and they would catch me up at once. I understood that it was impossible to run.

7-8 minutes later the policemen brought three more people. I asked if it were those people who had had a car accident. They did not tell anything, but the chief ordered to the staff-members to get us onto the car. We were forced to get on and driven to Gori. I underline – forced. They explained to us that the suffered person was in Gori and that he had to be assisted medical help. One of us objected that we were not doctors and thus we were unable to provide assistance. I understood that this was the next provocation and that great problems were waiting for us and I said it aloud. All other hostages agreed with me.

We were delivered to Gori. In the center of the town there is a monument to Stalin and to the east of that monument there is the Police Department. I noticed that at the same time when we arrived the former staff-member of the Tskhinval Department of Interior Issues, my old acquaintance, at present Deputy Chief of the Department of Interior Issues in Gori Travmagidze Shalva. Seeing me he turned red and said: “Why did they catch exactly you? I can’t help you now”. I understood that they had some intentions. He pointed at a grating and let us understand that we would be put into prison. We were not let out of the car, they were given order to send us to the town department. They transported us and at once several staff-members ran out, opened the doors and led us under escort to the cabinets of the department. Zoziashvili and me were separated from other hostages – the surname of both of them was Khubaev. We were placed into the same cabinet, where were the others sent I did not see.

Naturally I understood that they followed a goal. Though I did not understand yet what was the aim of the kidnapping. Actually we were kidnapped without any legal grounds and taken to Gori. Different people became to come into the cabinet where we were. These were representatives of special services. They wore different uniform and marks. One of them asked how was the president Kokoity getting on and whom we trust – to him or to Sanakoev. They used unquotable words. Then I was told that we were also his renegades. I let him understand that one might not humiliate the whole people, even if you do not love one person. But among them was one who made an acid remark that our president was devoted to his people.

Other people came, they asked if in Tskhinval it was sold much drugs, why Ossets wared against Georgians, why Kokoev considered the opinion of the Government of the RF and paid no attention at Georgia.

At about 8.00 p.m. came one tall staff-member of police and solemnly declared: “Inform your relatives that you are detained because of drugs! They did not even make a search, there was not a single document, they checked only our pockets and stated that we’ll be judged because of drugs”.

Later on we found out that we were detained to be changed for Goginashvili. They thought that the government of South Ossetia would immediately react on their condition and will change us for him. But the plan did not work out. Then they took us back at 10.00 to the main department, put on our hands handcuffs and took to the third flour. They placed Khubaev Alikhan with us. Chief of the department came. I was surprised when he proposed us to eat. I understood that something was wrong. We felt awful and refused. We left with on of the staff-members. We were thirsty. He asked if they were our enemies.

He went out and brought mineral water “Nabeglavi”. Khubaev began to drink. When he drank he suggested to me either and I also began to drink. The water tasted like a rotten apple. It turned out that they had added drugs to the water. Though I thought that it was the smack of water. Then we were taken to the laboratory and drugs were revealed in our analysis. One of the members began to make a paper in Georgian. At that time came another member of the police and told us to call our relatives and ask them to raise clamor before the Interior Minister Mindzaev to change us for the arrested Georgian. They brought a telephone and I rang up my wife. We were explained that those documents are necessary for the exchange. We signed them though we did not know what papers it were. On seeing that in Tskhinval they did not react on our detention they understood that it is necessary to keep us longer.

The interrogation continued till 4.00 a.m. then we were placed in cells. Later I found out that it had been compiled a document that allegedly it had been found drugs in our pockets.

I believe in God, when the believers in Georgia found out that I was detained they appealed to the Organization of Human Rights Defense that a believer was accused of having drugs. A representative of the Organization came to Gori and asked to write explanations me. I wrote that we had been detained illegally with the rudest violation of our rights, without a translator, advocate, that our documents were in Georgian, which we did not know. He called himself Vakhtang Minavdi. He wrote down that I had no drugs, that since 1987 I do not smoke anв use alcohol, not speaking about drugs. But the representatives of the Georgian police told that the population was drug addicts beginning from the president.

It was clear to me that they try to present our republic to the world community as criminal one. Minavdi told to the police leadership that any documents should be compiled with the participation of an advocate and translator. After the visit of the representative of a legal organization they begun to bustle and promised to release me on Tuesday. On Monday we were invited an advocate.

At 2.00 Khubaev and me were asked to come out of cells. I would like to exact that it was not allowed to have plastic bottles in the cells and at the entrance there were constantly bottles with water so at any moment they could mix into drugs. They can make a drug addict out of every man. That is why I am afraid for our people whom Georgian police captures – suddenly it turns out that they are drug addicts. They can detain any citizen of South Ossetia and declare him a criminal.

We were invited into the cabinet of the investigator David, I knew him already, the advocate Grigoriani was also present. The investigator said that if we whished to be let free we had to give confessing evidences as if drugs had been found out by us, that they belonged to us. I said that it was illegal. Then I received an answer that they were not interested in our evidences at all, that those papers that had been compiled were enough for our arresting. They said that the evidences needed so as we could be released on bail.

It was no air in the cells, it raised anxiety. Khubaev began to speak about suicide. The investigator drew the documents as he liked and we were forced to sign them. We were taken to the court. There the investigator stated to the judge that we had confessed and that they should change the preventive punishment. He proposed instead of keeping us in prison to release us on bail. Every of us was obliged to deposit 2,000 Lari to the State bank of Gori. The prosecutor supported the opinion of the investigator and the court agreed with their opinion. Thus we were released on bail.

Every of us received psychological trauma. This criminal case is illegal and it must be ceased. I’m alerted by the fact that representatives of OSCE and ICRC did not visit us; when Georgians are detained, they certainly visit them and let know to their relatives.