This was announced by the Speaker of the Parliament of the Republic of Georgia, Shalva Papuashvili He signed a bill on Thursday that defines marriage as between a man and a woman and bans the promotion of same-sex relationships in schools, local media reported.
The legislation states that Georgia recognizes the family values of the union of a man and a woman, which are strengthened by the state's constitutional agreement Apostolic Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Georgia and the State of Georgia. While the legislation indicates that there are foreign laws which recognize and allow same-sex marriage, it said that these practices disregard the best interests of minors and would be incompatible with the Child Rights Code and several other legal instruments protecting children.
The law defines marriage as the union of a genetic man and a genetic woman and prohibits sex reassignment surgery. It also prohibits official documents from indicating an identity holder's genetic gender and criminalizes gatherings aimed at promoting gay marriage.
While the The European Commission for Democracy through Law acknowledged that Georgia's decision to limit marriage to one man and one woman was in line with Article 12 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). The commission said there was no “justification for banning…transsexuals from drinking”. the right to marry in all circumstances.” The Commission also found that bans on sex reassignment surgery violated Article 8 of the ECHR, which provides for the right to respect for private and family life.
In September, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced visa restrictions for 60 Georgians after Georgian lawmakers approved the bill. The 60 Georgians include senior government officials who Blinken said were “responsible for or complicit in the undermining of democracy in Georgia.” Georgian Prime Minister Iraqi Kobakhidze said the country may revise its ties with the United States if the United States imposes further sanctions on Georgian officials.
