Georgia passes Russian-style anti-LGBTQ+ law ahead of crucial election

In the run-up to the 26 October elections, the government of Georgia took yet another step further away from Brussels, adopting a draft law on "Family Values and Protection of Minors" that explicitly discriminates against LGBTQ+ people.

Mamuka Mdinaradze, chairman of the ruling Georgian Dream party, said that a legislative change was needed as a countermeasure to LGBTQ+ "propaganda".

"In two or three generations it can have such harmful consequences," he said, insisting that same-sex marriage can not be allowed and that if it were, the impact on Georgian society could be of a magnitude "that no conqueror has been able to achieve for centuries".

At a plenary session, the controversial law passed without objections, with 84 in favour and zero against.

Opposition parties were not present, as many have been boycotting the parliament ever since the adoption of the infamous "foreign agents" law earlier this year.

The anti-LGBTQ+ bill consists of about a dozen articles addressing marriage, adoption, and medical procedures, as well as dissemination of information, gatherings, and demonstrations in a further crackdown on the right to gather, according to activists.

Furthermore, the government has designated 17 May — the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia — as the day of "Purity of the Family and Respect for Parents".

The opposition remains divided on the new legislation, and has been cautious not to alienate socially conservative voters. Some of its opponents are not explicitly decrying the legislation as "undemocratic" and instead are criticising it as "untimely".

'Classic Russian propaganda'

The bill has been strongly criticised by many in Georgia's civil society.

Human rights defenders argue that the government is trying to distract its supporters from real problems and create another barrier to European integration.

"This is classic Russian propaganda, where the government invents a non-existent problem and promises to solve it," said Eka Chitanava, the director of the Institute of Tolerance and Diversity. "There are many social problems in Georgia that create an unfavourable environment which also affects minors."

"This law, on the one hand, puts the LGBTQ+ community — already the most marginalised group in the country — in an even more vulnerable position. On the other hand, it damages the state of human rights for all citizens.”

Civil society groups claim that the law, which resembles legislation enacted in Russia, encroaches on freedom of speech while also legalising censorship.

"What Russia has been working toward for ten years, Georgian Dream has offered us directly," said Khatia Ghoghoberidze, a member of the Georgian Journalism Charter Council.

"Russia was moving toward this step by step," Ghoghoberidze told Euronews. "The Georgian Dream brought us a version that is in place in Russia today, and the parliament adopted this law.

"I'll say it directly: it's just a shame."