South Caucasus

South Caucasus
 
PRI's South Caucasus regional office is in Tbilisi, Georgia.
 
PRI has been working in the region since 1999 and currently manages programmes in Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia. The main aim of PRI in the region is to contribute to regional criminal justice developments by promoting international standards, giving examples of best practice and by working in close partnership with governmental and non-governmental organisations.
 
Socio-political context
 
Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia are members of the Council of Europe, whose institutions, such as the European Court of Human Rights and the Committee for the Prevention of Torture, are key standard setters.
 
The South Caucasus States also benefit, as members, from the recommendations of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and its Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR).
 
The South Caucasus countries have ratified the main international human rights treaties, including most recently the United Nations Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture, and have also designated their National Preventive Mechanisms (NPM),
 
The death penalty has been abolished in the region to fulfill commitments on joining the Council of Europe.
 
Penal reform challenges in the region
 
Corruption is still present in most parts of the region’s criminal justice systems, particularly in Armenia and Azerbaijan. Even where it is not, public confidence is low.
 
Lawyers and judges, many of whom qualified during a time of widespread corruption, lack full independence and are often insufficiently qualified or confident to work within an adversarial criminal justice system. The lack of expertise has resulted in the over-use of custodial sentences.
 
Prison reforms in the region are focused on addressing the legacy of the Soviet era, including the Soviet camp culture. The transition from colony to cell-type prisons remains an ongoing challenge, along with maintaining and replacing buildings that were not originally designed as places of detention and which are unfit for habitation. Prison reforms also rest on challenging the prevailing concept of security which is based on the use of force rather than a culture of dignity and respect.
 
Although previously non-existent, the region is now developing training resources for prison and probation staff. However, low pay and prestige have dogged attempts to attract properly educated and motivated prison staff. Probation and other alternatives to detention have not been adequately resourced or developed.
 
PRI is addressing these challenges by:  

• Evaluating national legislation in accordance with international standards
• Challenging prison overcrowding with a focus on prison conditions and mechanisms of release
• Developing rehabilitation schemes for offenders throughout the chain of criminal justice
• Strengthening the Probation Service and the use and implementation of alternatives
• Establishing and strengthening  the Juvenile Justice system
• Monitoring of penal institutions and promotion of civil society involvement
• Ensuring criminal sanctions are centred on rehabilitation of the offender and crime prevention
• Promoting opportunities for civil society to play a more active role in the criminal justice system.

Further information about PRI's work in the South Caucasus
PRI's work on engaging civil society in prison reform in Georgia
PRI's work on torture prevention in Georgia
PRI's work on juvenile justice in Georgia
PRI's work on juvenile justice in Armenia
 
Further reading
Attitudes of Georgia's population towards crime and penal policy (PRI commissioned survey)
An Assessment of Penal Legislation in Georgia 
 Life Imprisonment and Conditions of Serving the Sentence in the South Caucasus
Reform of the Penitentiary System (Presentation by The Georgian Ministry of Corrections and Legal Assistance)