The type of special means used by the police and its intensity are determined in accordance with the specific situation following the rules defined by the acting legislation, reads the statement, released by the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

“Based on the high public interest, we would like to respond to the information spread by one of the media sources, related to the fact that the Ministry of Internal Affairs applied special means in violation of the law during the protests held in connection with the adoption of “Transparency of Foreign Influence” law this year.

In order to inform the public, the Ministry would like to clarify that the information spread by the mentioned TV company’s report, alleging that the Ministry violated the “Law on Police” by simultaneously using water cannon and tear gas, is a complete falsehood and an attempt to mislead citizens.

The “Law on Police” of Georgia clearly defines the rules for the use of special means by the police. According to Article 33, Paragraph III, “the use of tear gas is allowed to repel an attack on a person, a police officer and/or a protected object, to prevent a mass and group violation of the rule of law”, while an anti-riot water cannon vehicle is used to prevent a mass violation of the rule of law, to prevent a group attack on a state and/or public facility”.

The type of special means used by the police and its intensity are determined in accordance with the specific situation following the rules defined by the acting legislation.

We would like to emphasize that neither the Law of Georgia “On Police”, nor any valid legal act issued on the basis of the mentioned law, prohibits the use of water cannons and tear gas simultaneously and in parallel to each other.

Moreover, the recommendations of authoritative international organizations, such as OSCE/ODIHR handbook and Amnesty International’s guideline do not envision such prohibition.

According to Amnesty International"s guidelines, it is permissible to combine marker dyes and/or chemical irritants into the water cannon, while the OSCE/ODIHR handbook specifies that, water cannon may have additives such as tear gas and applied against individuals involved in violent actions. According to the same document, the sole purpose of using tear gas should be to break up the assembly and it should not be used in a place where people will not have the opportunity to disperse.

We note once again that the Ministry of Internal Affairs, while managing violent gatherings and demonstrations, resorts to special means that are in full compliance with European standards and are actively used by the police units in a number of European states.

The spread of false information is aimed at misleading the public and deliberately discrediting the Ministry of Internal Affairs”, - reads the statement.