Today on 11th of October, LGBTIQ Rights in Finland Seta together with human rights defenders gathered in front of the Georgian Embassy in Helsinki to express our support to the human rights of LGBTIQ+ persons in Georgia and show solidarity with the Georgian LGBTIQ+ community.
The recently passed legislative package On Family Values and the Protection of Minors in Georgia specifically targets the LGBTIQ+ community with amendments to 18 existing laws. It purports to combat “LGBT propaganda” and protect national and religious values. The provisions include:
- A ban on advertising, public demonstrations, or information in schools in connection to LGBTI people and identities
- A ban on legal gender recognition
- A ban on any kind of trans-specific healthcare, such as hormone therapy
- Making “biological sex” markers mandatory in state issued documents and labour contracts
- A ban on adoption for same-sex couples
- A ban on any legal recognition of same-sex couples
These bans flagrantly violate the human rights of LGBTIQ+ people and are as well against Georgia’s own Constitution. We have noted that there has been significant opposition to this bill among Georgian society, which supports democracy, EU accession and a thriving civic space, and is opposed to anti-democratic laws which are similar to ones adopted in Russia.
We also express our grave concern about political hate speech and incitement to hatred targeting sexual and gender minorities carried out by Georgian politicians. Such expressions of hate legitimize and incite hate incidents against LGBTIQ+ persons.
LGBTIQ people are at severe risk of discrimination and violence, with transgender individuals and minors being particularly vulnerable to violence and rights violations. The foreign agent law’s restrictions on LGBTIQ civil society infringe on the rights to freedom of expression, freedom of association, and privacy, contravening international and European standards on democracy and non-discrimination.
We call on Georgia to repeal these “propaganda laws” and take immediate steps to ensure the safety and human rights of LGBTIQ+ people, ensure legal gender recognition, guarantee the right to health, and ensure access to information, in accordance with international human rights standards.