Georgia has come a long way when it comes to gender equality
Image courtesy Sydney Allen via Canva
Georgia has come a long way when it comes to gender equality. Last was this progress praised until Committee for the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), which is examining the Sixth Periodic Report from Georgia in February. the committee written down the “variety of mechanisms, plans and actions to advance efforts for equality and women’s empowerment to combat gender-based violence and domestic violence”.
However, despite the significant progress, gaps remain after for the head of the Georgian representation to the committee, Niko Tatulashvili, in addition to laws and other necessary mechanisms, require “a mental revolution”. The notion of mentality also came up during a recent Global Voices podcast interview with authors Maya Talakhadze and Ekaterine Khositashvili of an upcoming report as part of the “overcoming gender inequality“Project in Georgia.
The project is a joint initiative of the Disruption Network Lab and the Regional Development Hub-Caucasus. They were joined by Emmy Thume, a journalist from Germany who visited Georgia in September and September published a story about domestic violence in the country. Together, the three speakers shared their thoughts on the state of gender (in)equality in Georgia, the research findings of the report and the next steps. The full podcast interview for this story can be found here.
The origins of the report
In an interview with Global Voices, Maya Talakhadze, director of the Regional Development Hub-Caucasus, Disruption Network’s partner, said the idea for the research was born at the beginning of the COVID pandemic, when women were being forced to stay at home with the perpetrators of abuse and violence. Finally, four main themes were identified for the report: sexual harassment at work, domestic violence, economic empowerment and political empowerment of women in Georgia.
Each of these issues brought both negative and positive results, Ekaterine Khositashvili said during the interview. For example, since 2019, Georgia has passed a number of amendments to existing laws and codes related to sexual harassment in the workplace and introduced the concept of sexual harassment in the workplace and in public life. According to Ekaterine, despite the legal framework and mechanisms protecting victims of sexual harassment in the workplace, the number of sexual harassment complaints was low.
So far, twelve ministries in Georgia have introduced five reporting mechanisms for sexual harassment. However, it was interesting that as a result of our research, we found that only two cases of sexual harassment were reported through the mechanism in place.
While it was unclear why the numbers were so low, Khositashvili said the likelihood of reputational damage may have played a role. “Respondents indicated that they hesitated because of the opinions of colleagues and career opportunities in the future,” explained Khositashvili.
The reluctance to report sexual harassment extends beyond public institutions. This also applies to victims of domestic violence and violence. For example, while victims can apply for accommodation in emergency shelters, they are often reluctant to do so. “They think they are not strong enough to take advantage of these opportunities and instead think about societal opinions and perceptions. Although the law provides victims with opportunities to protect their rights, victims are unable to enjoy these rights due to societal pressure,” added Khositashvili.
Infographic by Disruption Lab. Shared with permission.
Emmy Thume also noticed the latter during her time in Georgia. “In the interviews I’ve conducted with lawyers and women who run shelters, as well as activists across the board, [they] mentioned mentality and the patriarchal mindset that makes it harder for women to speak their own truth and seek justice,” Thume recalled.
According to the report’s findings:
- Violence against women and domestic violence remain major challenges in the country. The data showed that the prosecution rate in violence against women and domestic violence cases is significantly higher than the rate of beneficiaries using violence against women and domestic violence prevention services, which may indicate the low awareness of women victims of violence the government services available;
- The maximum number of beneficiaries in shelters for victims of violence does not correspond to the rate of domestic violence in the country, which can be a dissuasive factor for potential victims;
- According to statistical data, the number of restraining orders issued increased, and the cases of murdering women decreased.
- Femicide remains a key issue, indicating, among other things, the need to strengthen law enforcement officials’ capacity to address violence against women.
Infographic by Disruption Lab. Shared with permission.
recommendations
One way to raise awareness of gender equality in Georgia has been to focus on literature and films, Talakhadze said in an interview with Global Voices.
The main reason we decided to include feminist literature and push screening as a means of raising awareness was that gender inequality is much deeper and bigger than the law and these channels [films and literature] give us insights into what we need to do more to empower each other. I’m not saying that reading is some kind of magic that makes you stronger or more powerful, but it does help. There are insights. And it’s not just reading or literature. There are other things that help us shape our opinions, positions, and our willingness to defend ourselves and exercise our rights.
And the feedback is positive, explains Talakhadze – at least from the participants of these events.
But these efforts must go hand-in-hand with government-funded awareness-raising work, explains Khositashvili. “Although we have found that the government’s communication strategy is working, we also need to work directly with the people here in Georgia through culture, literature and films. We have to use other means of communication because what the government does is only one side, while civil society should focus on parallel activities.”
In relation to recommendations and practices to ensure women are aware of existing services and legal remedies; encouraging women to report cases of workplace harassment; Strengthening economic opportunities for women (especially compared to existing government-sponsored economic programs); early education programs (from kindergarten and elementary school); and simplifying the language of laws to make them more accessible to all are all viable options for achieving greater gender equality.
None of these recommendations and suggestions can work unless there is a concerted effort to break down ingrained stereotypes. Legally, Georgia is on track to eliminate these and other forms of restrictions and violations; In practice, however, there is still a long way to go.
