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Parliament of Georgia | |
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Territorial extent | ![]() |
Signed by | Chairperson of the Parliament of Georgia Shalva Papuashvili |
Signed | 3 October 2024 |
Legislative history | |
Committee responsible | Legal Issues Committee |
First reading | 27 June 2024 |
Voting summary |
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Second reading | 4 September 2024 |
Voting summary |
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Third reading | 17 September 2024 |
Voting summary |
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Status: In force |
The Georgian anti-LGBT propaganda law [1] (Georgian :საქართველოს კანონი ლგბტ პროპაგანდის წინააღმდეგ, romanized:sakartvelos k'anoni lgbt' p'rop'agandis ts'inaaghmdeg), formally the Law on Family Values and Protection of Minors [2] (Georgian :საქართველოს კანონი ოჯახური ღირებულებებისა და არასრულწლოვნების დაცვის შესახებ, romanized:sakartvelos k'anoni ojakhuri ghirebulebebisa da arasrults'lovnebis datsvis shesakheb), is a legislative package in Georgia that was passed with the third and final reading by the Parliament of Georgia on 17 September 2024 and was signed into effect on 3 October 2024. [3] Its introduction was announced by the Chairman of Georgian Parliament Shalva Papuashvili on 4 June. The package consists of the "core law", the Law on Family Values and Protection of Minors, and 18 amendments which modified various existing laws in Georgia, including the Civil Code, the Labor Code, the General Education Act etc. [4]
The legislation was supported by the ruling Georgian Dream party, its ally People's Power, and the pro-government European Socialists party. The bill's voting was boycotted by opposition parties, except Girchi, which attended the session and criticized the bill. [5] The opposition For Georgia party, while not attending the parliamentary discussion, still voiced partial support for the bill. [6]
Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili refused to sign the bill, returning it to the Georgian Parliament, after which Chairman of Georgian Parliament Shalva Papuashvili signed the bill into the law. [3] [7]
The bill was met by international condemnation from Western countries and organizations such as the EU and US. The EU described the bill as "harmful" and stated that it was considering stripping Georgians of visa free travel to the EU and freezing other agreements such as EU candidacy following the passage of the bill. While most of Georgians support the European integration, most Georgians at the same time have negative opinion on the LGBT movement and consider homosexuality to be unacceptable. [8] [9]
Following the EU, the US likewise sanctioned various members of the Georgian parliament following passage of the bill. [10] [11] [12]
The legislation has been compared to similar laws in Bulgaria [13] and Russia. [14]
The active discussions on banning the "LGBT propaganda" in Georgia's parliament began in 2023. Speaking to news media on 1 May 2023, Mamuka Mdinaradze, the leader of the Georgia's parliamentary majority, claimed that a survey by American research firm Gallup, which identified 20% of adult members of Generation Z in USA as LGBT, had demonstrated that 'LGBT propaganda' could 'dramatically increase' the number of representatives of the LGBT community. He said that a strict line must be drawn between "protection of LGBT rights" and "propaganda of LGBT". [15] On 3 May, Fridon Injia, a member of pro-government European Socialists party, stated that he would draft the bill to outlaw the "LGBT propaganda", saying that the "LGBT propaganda destroys Georgia, the Georgian family, the state, it affects the demographic situation, it's unacceptable for the mentality of a Georgian man". [16] On 4 May, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili for the first time took part in the Conservative Political Action Conference in Budapest, where he spoke of the importance of preserving "traditional values" and the inadmissibility of "violence by the minority against the majority" in a denunciation of "aggressive [LGBT] propaganda" as a tool to forcefully change the traditional values of the majority. [17] Prime Minister elaborated that "the imposition of LGBT values is the violence of the minority over the majority" and also stated that "90 percent of Georgians share conservative views and family-based values", "Christian values", adding that both minority and majority should be protected. [18] On 12 June 2024, the government introduced a draft law to ban the commercial surrogacy for foreign nationals, citing, among other reasons, concerns over child safety as foreign nationals often took children abroad and "sold them to same-sex couples". [19]
On 15 June, the Georgian officials and the Georgian Orthodox Church condemned the "LGBT propaganda" in the McDonald's newly-distributed Happy Meals, which featured a book about the life of Elton John, including his gay marriage to David Furnish and their children from a surrogate mother. The book said: "[Elton] married to a spouse, David, and created a family with two sons". The Georgian Orthodox Church stated that the book aimed to instill "false values" into the children, while Mamuka Mdinaradze noted that "Getting used to this topic from a young age is harmful for the future generation... There is no need for a child to learn to defend LGBT rights at two, three, seven and ten years old, but this topic penetrates, and it's disgusting". [20] Mayor of Tbilisi Kakha Kaladze denounced the book by calling it a "propaganda of filth". [21]
On 21 June, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili denounced "extreme [LGBT] propaganda that is taking place in kindergartens and schools", citing France where he said the number of youngsters identifying as LGBT increased up to 22%. [22] On 30 June, during his speech to the Parliament of Georgia, the Prime Minister called for a ban on "LGBT propaganda", saying that "we should open the debate in our country" and that "you know what is happening in Europe and, unfortunately, in America as well, there is public information about it, this propaganda has already entered the kindergartens, it is unacceptable". [23] On 2 July, the Georgian Orthodox Church issued a statement, calling for a ban on "LGBT propaganda". [24] Deputy Speaker of Parliament Gia Volski, MP Aluda Ghudushauri and others voiced support for the initiative and condemned the "LGBT propaganda directed at children", citing the animated science fantasy film Nimona, calling the "LGBT propaganda" in it "immoral" and "unacceptable". [25] [26]
In July 2024, Georgian officials and religious figures condemned the 2024 Summer Olympics opening ceremony. Mamuka Mdinaradze stated that the event clearly demonstrated the urgent need for the bill prohibiting the "LGBT propaganda", which the Georgian officials said was a threat to the Georgian identity and traditions. Shalva Kekelia, the leader of the Church of the Transfiguration, said that the Paris Olympics opening ceremony was an "insult and violation of religious feelings", remarking that "Christianity is being caricatured to the end". [27]
The draft law "On Family Values and Protection of Minors" was introduced to the Parliament of Georgia on 4 June 2024 by the ruling Georgian Dream party. The introduction was announced by the Speaker of Parliament Shalva Papuashvili. [4] On 27 June 2024, the Parliament of Georgia passed the proposed bill in the first reading with 78 MPs supporting the package and no votes against it, as MPs opposing the bill chose not to take part in the vote. In the aftermath of the bill passing its first reading, Papuashvili said that parliament had made 'a truly important decision'. [1] The further discussions on the bill were postponed to the parliament's autumn session. The discussion were resumed on 2 September. [28] During the second hearing, the ruling party MP Beka Davituliani emphasized the need to protect LGBT rights while also "protecting children from propaganda". [29] On 4 September, the Parliament of Georgia voted in favor of the law in the second hearing by 81 votes to zero. [30] [31] On 17 September, the draft law was passed in the final reading with 84 votes in favour and zero against. [32] The opposing MPs, except those from Girchi, [5] did not attend the votes as they have been boycotting parliamentary work ever since the adoption of the foreign agents law. [33] [34]
In parallel, the ruling Georgian Dream party has initiated the separate legislative package of proposed constitutional amendments also called "On Family Values and Protection of Minors" to make corresponding changes in the Constitution of Georgia too. The draft constitutional law was officially proposed to the Parliament of Georgia on 4 April 2024. [35] After evaluating the bill, First Deputy Chairperson of the Parliament of Georgia Gia Volski claimed that the bill "does not in any way suppress or violate the rights of sexual minorities" and only tries to prevent propaganda that could harm the development of minors as a matter of national security. [36]
On 2 October 2024, President Salome Zourabichvili, despite opposing the bill, neither vetoed it nor signed it into the law. With the bill having enough supporters in parliament to overcome the vote from President, some observers noted that Zourabichvili possibly did not want to give the parliament the opportunity to meet in an extraordinary session and "pass the law triumphantly" prior to the 2024 Georgian parliamentary election. [37] After the President returned the bill to the parliament, its chairman Shalva Papuashvili signed the bill into the law on 3 October. Papuashvili emphasized that the law is "based on common sense, historical experience, and centuries-old Christian, Georgian, and European values rather than being shaped by temporary ideologies". [3]
The legislative package consists of the core bill "On Family Values and Protection of Minors" and 18 related amendments to the various laws. The proposed changes include outlawing "alternative marriage unions" other than that of a man and a woman, banning adoption of a minor to people who do not identify "as their gender" or are not heterosexual, prohibiting all surgical operations or medical interventions for gender reassignment, and prohibiting putting any gender "different from his/her own" on any state or identity documents. The changes also include restrictions on promoting information popularizing "a person's belonging to a gender different from his or her gender, same-sex relationship or incest" in the educational institutions, or promoting such information via media, radio or television broadcasting, or advertisements. According to the Chairman of Parliament, this provision would be restricted by "a prohibition on illustrating an intimate relationship between same-sex couples or incest through media". The package would also restrict public gatherings or demonstrations aimed at promoting gender identity, non-heterosexual relationships, or incest, and void any public or private institution of labor obligations "aimed at neglecting biological sex". Finally, the package would also designate May 17th as a holiday for the "sanctity of the family and respect for parents". [4]
Although according to the polls most of the Georgians support the European integration, most Georgians don't share the EU's cultural liberalism. [8] According to the 2021 International Social Survey Programme (ISSIP) study, 84% of the Georgian public thinks that sexual relations between two adults of the same sex are always wrong, which is the highest score in Europe. [38] Per World Values Survey study published in 2022, 91% of the Georgian public thinks that homosexuality is not justifiable. [9]
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) people in Georgia face severe challenges not experienced by non-LGBTQ residents. However, Georgia is one of the few post-Soviet states that directly prohibits discrimination against all LGBTQ people in legislation, labor-related or otherwise. Since 2012, Georgian law has considered crimes committed on the grounds of one's sexual orientation or gender identity an aggravating factor in prosecution.
The Tbilisi Sakrebulo, is a representative body in the city government of Tbilisi, Georgia. It is also known in English as the Tbilisi City Council or Tbilisi Assembly.
Salome Zourabichvili is a French-born Georgian politician, former diplomat and the fifth president of Georgia – the first female president in the country's history. As a result of the constitutional amendments that came into effect in 2024, Zourabichvili became the last popularly elected president; under the new constitutional rules, moving forward Georgian presidents are to be elected indirectly by a parliamentary college of electors.
Free Democrats, previously known as Our Georgia – Free Democrats is a liberal and pro-Western political party in Georgia. It was founded by Irakli Alasania, Georgia's former envoy to the United Nations, on 16 July 2009. Tamar Kekenadze serves as the party's current chairman.
Nika Gvaramia is a Georgian lawyer, media entrepreneur, public figure, who had held posts of Minister of Justice and Minister of Education and Science. He was the Director General of Rustavi 2 and Mtavari Arkhi and he's also founder of Mtavari Arkhi, an opposition television network. On March 11, he co-founded the political party Ahali and alliance Coalition for Change alongside other opposition figure Nika Melia. In the 2024 Georgian parliamentary election, the alliance finished on 2nd place, becoming the leading opposition grouping.
Georgian Dream – Democratic Georgia (GD), also colloquially known as the Kotsebi, is a populist political party in Georgia. It is currently the ruling party in Georgia. Irakli Garibashvili serves as the party chairman, while the former chairman Irakli Kobakhidze has served as the prime minister since February 2024. Bidzina Ivanishvili, widely considered the de facto leader of the party, serves as its honorary chairman. The party's electoral number is 41.
New Political Centre – Girchi is a libertarian political party in Georgia. It was founded and registered in spring of 2016 by dissenting members of United National Movement. It included Zurab Japaridze, the chairman of the party from 2016 to 2018, as well as the de facto leader up until his departure in 2020, who went on to establish a new party with a similar name Girchi - More Freedom. Iago Khvichia has served as the party's chairman since 2018. The party received 2.9% of the vote in the 2020 Georgian parliamentary election, being granted 4 seats in the Georgian parliament as a parliamentary opposition, although it failed to receive any seats as a result of 2024 Georgian parliamentary election, despite marginally increasing its vote share to 3%, due to the increased electoral threshold.
Irakli Kobakhidze is a Georgian politician who holds the position of the 16th prime minister of Georgia since February 2024. He has previously served as a member of the Georgian Parliament from 2016 to 2024, chairman of the Parliament of Georgia from 2016 to 2019, as vice-president of Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe from 2020 to 2022 and held the post of chairman of Georgian Dream party from 2021 to 2024. Prior to joining politics, he was a professor at the Tbilisi State University and also worked for Western-funded non-governmental organizations.
Lelo for Georgia is a liberal political party in Georgia. It was established in 2019 by two businessmen Mamuka Khazaradze and Badri Japaridze. Soon after its founding, it attracted a number of prominent political figures and political parties with Development Movement and the New Rights Party merging to form a single political entity.
Shalva Papuashvili is a Georgian politician who has served as a member of the Georgian parliament since 2020 and as Speaker of Parliament since 29 December 2021.
Gakharia For Georgia is a political party in Georgia founded by former Georgian Prime Minister from the Georgian Dream party Giorgi Gakharia. It is currently in opposition with it having 11 MPs in the Georgian parliament.
Parliamentary elections were held in Georgia on 26 October 2024. The elections were held under the rules passed in 2017 through the constitutional amendments which shifted the electoral system towards a fully proportional representation with a 5% electoral threshold. The ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party sought to win its fourth term in office. Its founder, Bidzina Ivanishvili—an influential oligarch and former prime minister often regarded as the country's éminence grise following his official departure from politics in 2021—returned to politics several months before the polls to lead GD in the elections.
Droa! is a liberal political party in Georgia founded by Elene Khoshtaria in 2021, after her split from the European Georgia party. It was a part of the Coalition for Change alliance for the 2024 parliamentary election, receiving 2 seats in the Georgian parliament.
Iago Khvichia is a Georgian politician who served as a member of Parliament from 2020 to 2024. He is the chairman of New Political Center — Girchi, a right-libertarian political party.
People's Power is an anti-Western political party in Georgia. It was founded by MPs Sozar Subari, Mikheil Kavelashvili and Dimitri Khundadze, after they nominally separated from the ruling Georgian Dream.
Herman Szabó is a Georgian libertarian activist and politician, who served as a member of Parliament from 2021 to 2024. He is a member of right-libertarian party New Political Centre – Girchi. His political views have gathered significant media coverage, including his support for the legalization of cannabis and his opposition to military conscription.
In 2023 and 2024, a series of street demonstrations took place throughout Georgia largely in opposition to the proposed "Law on Transparency of Foreign Influence", which would require non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to register as foreign agents or "organizations carrying the interests of a foreign power" and disclose the sources of their income if the funds they receive from abroad amount to more than 20% of their total revenue.
Events in the year 2024 in Georgia.
Ahali is a liberal, pro-European political party in Georgia. It was founded in 2024 by Nika Melia, former chairman of United National Movement, and Nika Gvaramia, former CEO of Mtavari Arkhi TV channel. It was a part of Coalition for Change political alliance for the 2024 parliamentary election, receiving 10 seats in the Georgian parliament.
The "Global War Party" is a conspiracy theory created and advanced by Georgian Dream, a Georgian political party. It is an alleged international organization exerting a key influence on the European Union and the United States. According to some commentators connected to the party, the "Global War Party" includes the American military-industrial complex, George Soros and neoconservatives. Georgian Dream has accused it of prolonging the Russo-Ukrainian war and spreading it to other countries, assassinating sovereignist leaders, orchestrating revolutions around the world, and plotting to topple Georgian Dream from power.
Surprisingly to some in the West, most Georgians do not share their social liberalism despite overwhelmingly pro-EU/NATO views. There is little enthusiasm for LGBT+ parades or gay marriage. As proof, since the bill was announced there has been no major public demonstration and public reaction has been largely muted on social media