In order to address the COVID-19 pandemic and to respond to the needs of providing support to inmates and prison staff, the Council of Europe donated Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to the Special Penitentiary Service (SPS) of the Ministry of Justice of Georgia (MoJ) and the Public Defender’s Office of Georgia (PDO).

In total, 1550 face protective shields, 1800 disposable medical gowns, 1800 disposable medical caps, 1600 face masks, 500 disposable medical gloves, 300 disposable shoe covers, 50 litres of hand sanitizer and 50 litres of disinfectant liquid was handed over to the SPS and PDO. 

This is the second similar support provided within the framework of the Council of Europe Project “Enhancement of Human Rights and Health-Care Support to Penitentiary Service” in Georgia, which is designed to support the further improvement of healthcare services within the penitentiary system, with a special focus on mental healthcare. The first donation was made to the SPS in May 2020, responding to the emergency of the COVID-19 crisis.

The donation was built on the efforts of the Georgian penitentiary system and the ombudsman to follow the CPT statement of principles issued on 20 March 2020 for the treatment of persons deprived of their liberty in accordance with the World Health Organization guidelines. It assisted authorities in addressing COVID-19 crisis and improved the protection of the human rights of inmates.