Georgian parliamentary spokesman signed law against LGBT rights

Georgian parliamentary spokesman signed law against LGBT rights

The spokesman for the Georgian Parliament, Shalva Papuashvili, announced on Thursday in a Facebook post that he signed a law on "family values" that the Rights of LGBTQ+ Person restricts. This happened just a few weeks before the decisive parliamentary elections.

New law limits gender changes

The Governing Party of the Georgian Dream passed a law last month that prohibits gender transitions and possibly prohibited pride marches and showing the LGBTQ+ rainbow flag. The party argues that the law is necessary to protect the Orthodox Christian Church from external influences.

President Zourabichvili and opposition

President Salome Zourabichvili, the ruling of the governing party, refused to sign the law. However, the Georgian Dream and its allies in parliament had enough voices to overcome their opposition.

LGBTQ+activists and the choice

Georgische LGBTQ+activists see the law an attempt by Georgian Dream to increase the support of conservative voters before the elections on October 26, in which the party strives for an unprecedented fourth mandate.

international reactions

Some western countries have sharply criticized the law and described it as part of a tendency towards authoritarianism and an focus on Russia, although Georgia has been mostly pro-western since the collapse of the Soviet Union.

survey values ​​and political Situation

opinion surveys show that Georgian dream The country is, although the opposition is split. Nevertheless, the party has lost support since 2020 when it won almost 50% of the votes and a narrow majority in parliament.

law on foreign agents

Georgian Dream, founded by the richest man in the country, has also passed a law that is obliged to group the groups that receive funds from abroad as Foreign agents . Opponents of this law argue that there are role models for legislation in Russia that are used to criminalize different opinions.

Georgia's relationships with Russia

Relations with Moscow have overshadowed the politics of Georgia for decades. Georgia endeavors to join NATO and the EU. Russia supports separatists in two ethnic regions that were committed by Tbilisi in the 1990s. In addition, Russian troops defeated Georgia in a short war in 2008. Georgian Dream argued that the opponents of the party would mean a relapse to war and is committed to more stable relationships with Russia.