Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights urges Georgia to reject anti-LGBT law and refrain from stigmatising rhetoric – Civil Georgia

On 10 September, the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Michael O’Flaherty, published his 6 September letter to the Speaker of the Georgian Parliament, Shalva Papuashvili. In the letter, the Commissioner urges the Parliament to drop the anti-LGBT legislation recently adopted in the second hearing and “refrain from rhetoric that stigmatizes LGBTI people, including portraying their legitimate actions to obtain equal rights as LGBTI ‘propaganda/promotion.'”

The Commissioner also calls on the Georgian authorities to “work together with national and international partners, including the Council of Europe, on how best to protect the human rights of LGBTI people and combat discrimination against them.”

“The Bill provides a legal basis for discrimination against LGBTI people and appears to be contrary to the European Convention on Human Rights (the Convention),” writes Commissioner O’Flaherty, briefly outlining some of the relevant case law of the European Court of Human Rights.

The Commissioner, among others, is also “concerned about the prejudice against LGBTI people in parts of Georgian society, including among some politicians”, recalling statements by his predecessors that “LGBTI people continue to be targets of hate crimes and discrimination.”

He also notes that the various provisions of the anti-LGBT bill mention sexual orientation and gender identity alongside incest. “This only perpetuates the stigma and discrimination that LGBTI people face,” he argues.

“When it comes to ensuring effective protection of children from incest, sexual exploitation and abuse, and taking into account that Georgia is a party to the Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse (also known as the ‘Lanzarote Convention’), existing gaps in this area should be addressed through a targeted legislative intervention, without compromising other human rights protected under the Convention and without encouraging societal prejudice against LGBTI people,” writes Commissioner O’Flaherty.

In the letter, the Commissioner asks the Speaker of the Georgian Parliament to ensure that all Georgian MPs receive a copy. “I stand ready to continue our constructive dialogue on these and other human rights issues in Georgia,” he concludes.

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