After years of systematic abuse at the hands of her spouse, Roseta Kalichava, a native of Lodz, Poland, turned to Tamar Lukava, an attorney with Sapari, for assistance in May 2022. Sapari immediately alerted the appropriate authorities in Georgia and Poland, including the Georgian Embassy in Poland and the Ministry of Internal Affairs’ Department of Human Rights Protection. The embassy provided interpretation services to help with the domestic abuse case investigation. Even with coordinated efforts and demands for immediate action the malfunctioning of state structures prevented the initiation of a criminal case against the perpetrator, who continued to subject the woman to abuse. Instead, the Polish investigative body imposed only administrative sanctions on the man. Tragically, the woman was killed while alone on May 24, 2022, when the man attacked her in her own home.
Sapari reached out to the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights, a non-governmental organization operating in Poland. Represented by lawyer Jaroslav Jagura, they pursued a criminal case with the Polish Prosecutor’s Office and the Lodz District Court. Following Rosetta’s tragic passing, her three young children were entrusted to the care of Rosetta’s family in Georgia, under the guidance of Sapari’s lawyer, Tamar Lukava. Currently, Salome Saldadze, a Sapari’s lawyer in the Imereti region, is diligently working to secure custody for the children under their grandmother’s care.
On March 6, 2024, the Lodz District Court delivered its verdict, finding the perpetrator guilty of premeditated murder and imposing a life sentence. The court recognized Rosetta Kalichava as a victim of systematic violence throughout her life, citing correspondence between her and Tamar Lukava as key evidence. Furthermore, the court acknowledged that timely intervention by Polish investigative authorities could have prevented this tragic outcome. In addition to the life sentence, the perpetrator was ordered to pay compensation of approximately 50,000 euros (equivalent to 200,000 Polish zlotys) to each of Rosetta’s minor children.
According to Sapari’s lawyer, Eka Muzashvili, the case remains ongoing. Collaborating with the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights, efforts are underway to ensure the children receive compensation and to hold the state accountable for the indifference of Polish law enforcement agencies.
