Social Justice Center submitted an application to the European Court of Human Rights regarding the handover of the lands of the Georgian Muslim farmers living in the village Kikibo, Adigeni Municipality, to the Patriarchate of Georgia. The applicants claim the alleged violation of the right to property guaranteed under Article 1 of the First Additional Protocol to the Convention.

In 2018, the Government of Georgia transferred to the Patriarchate of Georgia free of charge up to 7 hectares of pasture lands in the village Kikibo, Adigeni Municipality, which was legitimately owned and used by the local farmers for a decade. The administrative bodies involved in the decision-making process had not investigated the fact of the legitimate ownership of the pastures in the village Kikibo by locals. The obligation to conduct such a survey derives from the legislation and judicial practice of Georgia, which protects the interests of the legitimate owners, similar to the right of property.

To protect the property rights of the farmers from the village Kikibo, Social Justice Center commenced litigation before the national courts, which ended successfully for one of the plaintiffs, as his right to the rightfully owned land was recognized. However, despite almost identical circumstances, the national courts refused to uphold the requests of the other four plaintiffs. The only reason for the court to make a different decision was that the expert could not determine the exact boundaries of the land plots belonging to these four plaintiffs. The only reason for the court to make a different decision was that the expert could not determine the exact boundaries of the land plots belonging to these four plaintiffs. The court failed to consider that in such cases, the administrative authorities are obliged to assist the rightful owners in determining the precise boundaries of the land.

Social Justice Center considers that, as a result of the unjust decision of the administrative bodies and the incomplete consideration of the case by the national courts, the right to property guaranteed under Article 1 of the First Additional Protocol to the European Convention on Human Rights was violated. As the rightful owners, the plaintiffs had a legitimate expectation to register the pastures in the village Kikibo as their property. However, with the transfer of these lands to the Patriarchate of Georgia, it became impossible to realize their legitimate expectations.

Social Justice Center also emphasizes that in the conditions of scarcity of agricultural land in the Adigeni region, the pastures of village Kikibo provide a fundamental source of livelihood for the local population. Despite this, in the decision-making process, administrative bodies completely disregarded the social interest of the local people in using the only pasture land in the village, and absolute priority was given to satisfying the economic interests of the Patriarchate of Georgia.

The cultural and religious context of Adigeni municipality should also be taken into account, whereas in the villages near Kikibo Chela (2013), Mokhe (2014), and Adigeni (2016), harrowing experiences of persecution of the Georgian Muslim community have accumulated in recent years. In this context, the transfer of the pasture lands of the village Kikibo to the Patriarchate of Georgia shows excessive political loyalty to the local diocese.

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