2.5.6. WORKING CHARACTERISTICS OF A JOINT PERMANENT COMMISSION OF THE MINISTRY OF CORRECTIONS OF GEORGIA AND THE MINISTRY OF LABOUR, HEALTH AND SOCIAL AFFAIRS OF GEORGIA The rules of procedures of the Joint Permanent Commission of the Ministry of Corrections of Georgia and the Ministry of Labour, Health and Social Affairs of Georgia has special importance for the prisoners that are suffering from the incurable disease187 or are the elderly inmates.188 The Commission consists of the respresentatives of the Ministry of Labour, Health and Social Affairs of Georgia and the Ministry of Corrections of Georgia. The objectives, composition and responsibility of the Commission is determined by the statute approved by the joint order N181/N01-72/N of the Minister of Corrections of Georgia and the Minister of Labour, Health and Social Affairs of Georgia dated 18 December 2012. The present chapter will focus on the release process of the convicts suffering from grave and incurable diseases and its results. It is worthwhile noting that the Commission reviews the documentation reflecting the health conditions189 and independently makes a final decision on the question of release of the convict. Based on the request from the chairperson of the Commission, the Secretariat of the Commission ensures the invitation of the qualified doctor specialist of a relevant field through the medical professional associations and taking into consideration the diagnostic group in order to study the state of health of the convict.190 The invited doctor specialists study the medical documentation of the convict, in case of need, conducts the clinical examination of the patient and prescribes para-clinical examinations. The Commission decides on the submission of a second medical opinion regarding the studying and diagnosing the convict’s health condition by the invited doctor specialists and on the course of disease and the severity of the state of health.191 Special importance has the legal nature of the Commission’s decision the procedures of 187 The list of those grave and incurable diseases which constitute the ground for the release of prisoners from serving a sentence is determined by the Order N01-6/N of the Minister of Labour, Health and Social Affairs of Georgia dated 15 February 2013. 188 According to Article 4 para 11 of the Statute of the Joint Permanent Commission of the Ministry of Corrections of Georgia and the Ministry of Labour, Health and Social Affairs of Georgia, the Commission reviews the applications only in cases when the female convict is 65 years old and more and the male – 70 years old and more, if he/she is not sentenced to life imprisonment and not less than a half of the sentence is already served. 189 Article 4 para 6 of the Statute of the Joint Permanent Commission of the Ministry of Corrections of Georgia and the Ministry of Labour, Health and Social Affairs of Georgia. 190 Article 4 para 7 of the Statute of the Joint Permanent Commission of the Ministry of Corrections of Georgia and the Ministry of Labour, Health and Social Affairs of Georgia. 191 Article 4 para 8 of the Statute of the Joint Permanent Commission of the Ministry of Corrections of Georgia and the Ministry of Labour, Health and Social Affairs of Georgia. 122 NATIONAL PREVENTIVE MECHANISM (NPM), 2015