Public Defender Ucha Nanuashvili had a meeting with United Nations Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights Flavia Pansieri in Geneva. The Ombudsman provided the UN Deputy High Commissioner with information on the situation in human rights in Georgia and emphasized changes that were carried out in recent period in the Public Defender’s Office of Georgia for elimination of all forms of discrimination, in the area of persons with disabilities, justice and gender equality. Issues discussed included situation in closed institutions, rights of persons living in conflict regions and progress of the justice reform.

In Geneva, Ucha Nanuashvili also met with the regional head of the Centre for the Democratic Control of the Armed forces where the issue of establishment of a department for protection of human rights in the defense sphere in the Public Defender‘s Office and its operation strategy were discussed. The Regional Head of the Centre for the Democratic Control of the Armed Forces expressed a wish to cooperate with the Public Defender’s Office; also, joint activities that will be conducted this year have already been planned.

In the framework of the official visit Ucha Nanuashvili met with the secretary of the Committee on Enforced Disappearance (CED) where they discussed the question of ratification of the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, which was also reflected in the Parliamentary Reports of the Public Defender for 2013 and 2014. The Committee Secretary expressed willingness for cooperation with the Georgian side that will encompass sharing experiences of other countries and educational activities.