Georgia's ruling party passed a controversial “family values” bill on Tuesday, September 17, denounced by human rights groups and the European Union as restricting the rights of LGBTQ+ people. The decision is expected to further inflame tensions in the country ahead of crucial parliamentary elections in October. In a vote boycotted by the opposition, deputies from the ruling Georgian Dream voted 84-0 to approve the bill “on family values and the protection of minors” as well as related changes to a number of other laws. The bill must be signed by pro-Western President Salome Zurabishvili or, if she rejects it, the speaker of parliament.
The measure mirrors similar laws used in Russia to restrict LGBTQ+ rights and “concerns restricting the propaganda of same-sex relationships and incest in educational institutions and television shows.” Human rights groups criticize the formulation of equating homosexual relationships with incest. It also bans gender reassignment surgery, gay and transgender adoption, and annuls same-sex marriages performed abroad on Georgian territory.
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Brussels said earlier this month that the package of proposed laws “undermines the fundamental rights of Georgians and risks further stigmatization and discrimination against part of the population.” The EU said the adoption of the bill would have a “significant impact” on EU hopeful Tbilisi's European integration path and “will further strain EU-Georgia relations”. “The EU recalls that Georgia's accession process has effectively come to a standstill and urges the authorities to recommit to the path of EU integration.”
Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili, who co-sponsored the bill, said it aims to “strengthen mechanisms for the protection of minors and family values based on the connection between women and men.” Tuesday's move follows Tbilisi's recent passage of a “foreign influence” law targeting NGOs, which sparked weeks of mass anti-government protests and Western condemnation.
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“Infringement”
On Monday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced sanctions against two Georgian government officials “for their involvement in serious human rights violations during the violent response to peaceful protests against the Foreign Influence Act.” Blinken said Washington was taking “additional steps to impose visa restrictions on more than 60 Georgian individuals and their family members who are responsible for or involved in the undermining of democracy in Georgia.” “We remain concerned about human rights violations and anti-democratic actions in Georgia and will continue to consider additional measures in response,” he said in a statement.
In May, the EU warned the Georgian Dream government that it was “drifting” from its path to joining the bloc by promoting measures that run counter to European values. Russia passed a similar law more than a decade ago banning the promotion of “non-traditional” relationships with children. It was criticized in the West as stigmatizing the LGBTQ+ community, but was heralded by ultra-conservative lawmakers as a rejection of liberal Western values. Moscow expanded it in 2022 to effectively ban all public representation of LGBTQ+ people.
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After initially pursuing a liberal, pro-Western political agenda when it came to power in 2012, Georgian Dream has strengthened its anti-Western and anti-liberal positions in the last two years. Critics accuse her of moving closer to the Kremlin's sphere of influence and endangering Georgia's accession to the EU.
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