During its meeting on September 17-19, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe discussed the implementation of ECHR judgments by member states, including Georgia. The Committee published the latest case-by-case decisions of the European Court of Human Rights, which included Georgian cases related to violence against LGBTI persons and gender recognition, as well as two interstate cases of Georgia v. Russia.
One of the cases, Identoba and others v. Georgia, highlighted the failure of State authorities to protect against homophobic or religiously motivated attacks, as well as police abuse with homophobic/transphobic bias. The Committee of Ministers urged the Georgian authorities to promptly complete all reopened investigations and establish responsibility for these acts. They also called for the expediting of the criminal trial in the Mikeladze and others case and requested detailed updates on each investigation.
In regards to the case of Georgian Muslim Relations and Others, the Committee expressed concern about the first applicant’s ability to use the boarding school building without any impediment and whether the domestic court decision to connect the school building to the sewerage system has been enforced.
The Committee of Ministers also expressed deep concern about Georgia’s draft constitutional law and legislative package on “Protection of Family Values and Minors”, which restrict freedom of expression and assembly on LGBTI issues. They warned that the adoption of such legislation could undermine Georgia’s compliance with ECHR judgments. The Committee urged the Georgian authorities not to adopt this legislative package and to avoid any further steps that could violate the country’s obligations under the Convention and related jurisprudence.
The Committee deplored that more than 12 years after the events in the case of Identoba and others, LGBTI persons in Georgia still face large-scale hate violence and are unable to fully exercise their right to freedom of assembly. They urged the Georgian authorities to demonstrate a firm commitment to combating hate-motivated violence and impunity by conveying an unambiguous zero-tolerance message at the highest level towards any form of discrimination and hate crime. The Committee also called for heightened protection and prevention measures to ensure that the rights to freedom of assembly and religion are effectively enjoyed by LGBTI people and religious minorities.
In conclusion, the Committee reminded the Georgian authorities of their responsibility to uphold equality, pluralism, tolerance, and open-mindedness. They urged the government to take immediate action to address the ongoing human rights violations and to fulfill its obligations under the Convention.
Read More @ civil.ge