Sozar Subari ( ka, სოზარ სუბარი) (born November 4, 1964) is a

Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...

politician, journalist, and

human rights Human rights are Morality, moral principles or Social norm, normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for ce ...

activist. He was formerly Georgia's Minister for IDPs, Accommodation and Refugees from 26 July 2014 to 13 June 2018. He served as a Public Defender (

Ombudsman An ombudsman (, also ,), ombud, ombuds, ombudswoman, ombudsperson or public advocate is an official who is usually appointed by the government or by parliament (usually with a significant degree of independence) to investigate complaints and at ...

) of Georgia from 2004 to 2009 and Minister of Corrections and Legal Assistance from 2012 to 2014. Subari was born as Sozar Subeliani (სოზარ სუბელიანი) in the highland village Chuberi (

Svaneti Svaneti or Svanetia (Suania in ancient sources; ka, სვანეთი ) is a historic province in the northwestern part of Georgia (country), Georgia. It is inhabited by the Svans, an ethnic subgroup of Georgians. Geography Situated o ...

). He studied history at the

Tbilisi State University Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University ( ka, ივანე ჯავახიშვილის სახელობის თბილისის სახელმწიფო უნივერსიტეტი ''Ivane Javaxishvi ...

and theology at the Tbilisi Theological Academy. After a service as a

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Churc ...

from 1989 to 1991, he took part in the armed conflict in

Abkhazia Abkhazia, ka, აფხაზეთი, tr, , xmf, აბჟუა, abzhua, or ( or ), officially the Republic of Abkhazia, is a partially recognised state in the South Caucasus, recognised by most countries as part of Georgia, which vi ...

in 1993. He was involved with the influential

NGO A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...

Liberty Institute First Liberty Institute is a nonprofit Christian conservative legal organizationHenry FarrellThese are the conservative legal groups behind the Masterpiece Cakeshop case ''Washington Post'' (December 5, 2017). based in Plano, Texas. Prominent ...

from 2000 to 2004. He also worked as a journalist, including being a correspondent for

Radio Liberty Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmit ...

, and an editor of the

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the Capital city, capital and the List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia (country), Georgia, lying on the ...

-based ''Kavkasioni'' newspaper. Subari was elected as Public Defender of Georgia by the

Parliament of Georgia The Parliament of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს პარლამენტი, tr) is the supreme national legislature of Georgia. It is a unicameral parliament, currently consisting of 150 members; of these, 120 are proportio ...

for five years term in 2004. During his tenure, the ombudsman's role in Georgian society increased. Subari emerged as a prominent critic of the

Mikheil Saakashvili Mikheil Saakashvili ( ka, მიხეილ სააკაშვილი ; uk, Міхеіл Саакашвілі ; born 21 December 1967) is a Georgian and Ukrainian politician and jurist.

government. During the anti-government rally of 2007, he claimed to have been repeatedly

beaten Battery is a criminal offense involving unlawful physical contact, distinct from assault which is the act of creating apprehension of such contact. Battery is a specific common law offense, although the term is used more generally to refer to ...

by the police, and stated, "Georgia is now the same as

Lukashenko Alexander Grigoryevich Lukashenko (as transliterated from Russian; also transliterated from Belarusian as Alyaksand(a)r Ryhoravich Lukashenka;, ; rus, Александр Григорьевич Лукашенко, Aleksandr Grigoryevich Luka ...

’s

Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by R ...

." Later he claimed that the police breakdown was masterminded at a secret meeting of top military and police officials and that Georgia's Interior Minister Vano Merabishvili had ordered police to beat protesters, "mainly in the kidneys and the stomach". On their part, the government officials have accused Subari of "politicizing" the Public Defender’s Office and turning into an opposition politician. Subari's term expired on 16 September, 2009. He was succeeded by Giorgi Tughushi, a ruling United National Movement (Georgia), United National Movement party nominee, who was approved by the parliament in July 2009. Subari himself joined the opposition Alliance for Georgia led by Georgia's former UN envoy, Irakli Alasania. In 2012, Subari became a member of the Georgian Dream party, founded by the billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili, whose coalition won the Georgian parliamentary election, 2012, 2012 parliamentary election. After this, Subari became Minister of Corrections and Legal Assistance in the cabinet of Bidzina Ivanishvili on 25 October, 2012, succeeding Giorgi Tughushi, his onetime successor as an ombudsman.Ivanishvili Confirmed as Prime Minister
Civil Georgia. October 25, 2012. On 2 August 2022, Subari left the Georgian Dream party and co-founded the People's Power (Georgia), People's Power party.

References

External links

Subari's biography
Public Defender of Georgia website. {{DEFAULTSORT:Subari, Sozar Activists from Georgia (country) Georgian Dream politicians Journalists from Georgia (country) Ombudsmen 1964 births Living people Government ministers of Georgia (country)