On the occasion of the International Human Rights Day, the local CSOs published the assessments and reports on the protection of human rights in Georgia in 2023.
Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association (GYLA)
On December 11, the Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association (GYLA) published an assessment on human rights situation and protection in Georgia in 2023.
The GYLA welcomes the European Commission’s positive recommendation on Georgia’s EU candidacy, but notes that there are a number of challenges that the country needs to address in the area of human rights protection. These include:
Increasing practice of shrinking space – The GYLA refers to the March protests and says that “the freedom of assembly is excessively restricted.” The watchdog notes that “despite the introduction of the draft law, discrediting campaigns against human rights defenders continue throughout the year in various ways, according to the preliminary findings and recommendations of the United Nations Special Rapporteur (on the situation of human rights defenders), published on November 7, 2023.”
Media freedom – The assessment states that “the absence of a zero-tolerance policy against violence, and, on the contrary, practices that encourage violence, including the impunity of perpetrators, have a devastating effect on the quality of media freedom,” noting the fact that none of the organizers of the violent attacks of July 5, 2021 have been brought to justice. The watchdog also highlights “the tendency of violence and harassment against critical journalists in Georgia.”
The Practice of Tracking and Illegal Wiretapping – According to the GYLA statement, the practice of surveillance and data collection by state institutions has intensified in recent years and the state’s powers regarding wiretapping and surveillance have been further expanded.
Human rights in the midst of natural disasters – the GYLA recalls the Shovi landslide on August 3, 2023, as a result of which 32 people lost their lives, and another landslide caused by heavy rains in Guria on September 8, 2023, which resulted in the death of three people. “These circumstances show that the state is not ready to deal with natural disasters and avoid the dangers arising from them,” – reads the statement, which also notes that “there are no early warning systems in the country and other requirements defined by the legislation are not properly fulfilled.”
Legal status of those placed in a penitentiary institution -The GYLA, citing the reports of the CPT and the Public Defender, emphasizes the “presence of a criminal subculture in penitentiary institutions” and says that it has a negative impact on the realization of prisoners’ rights.
Legal status of residents near the occupation line – the statement mentions the “disturbing facts of kidnapping and inhumane/humiliating treatment of Georgian citizens by the occupying forces” and refers in particular to the killing of a Georgian citizen, Tamaz Ginturi.
Women’s Rights – The statement reads: “Existing legislation and practices fail to provide effective, victim-centered, gender-sensitive legal mechanisms for sexual violence. For women subjected to violence, justice in unavailable and/or difficult to access.”
Equality – The statement focuses on the rights of the LGBT+ people, who are “particularly vulnerable to stigma and violence” in Georgia. Recalling the disruption of Tbilisi Pride by the extremist groups, the GYLA further notes that the “LGBT+ people and their rights were not mentioned even once in the working version of the Human Rights Action Plan.”
With regard to equality, the GYLA also refers to the amendments to the Defense Code, which further worsen the rights of religious minorities.
In the context of equality of religious associations, the watchdog notes the changes implemented in the Defense Code in 2023, which “laid the foundation for a discriminatory arrangement”, in particular, as the clergy of the Apostolic Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Georgia “will still be exempted from alternative labor service, while all other clergy will have to undergo non-military, alternative labor service.”
Labor rights – “In 2021, the situation in the direction of labor rights worsened especially in the system of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth of Georgia, where the mass dismissal of employees on the basis or reorganization, including on discriminatory grounds, began,” – reads the statement.
Rights of the Elderly – The GYLA refers to the “harmful practices, due to which pensioners have to litigate in court to receive their pension.”
Criminal Justice – The statement says that “judicial oversight is weak in with respect to preventive measures, legality of detention and plea bargaining,” and that all of these challenges have been revealed as a result of monitoring criminal justice processes.
The right to education – the GYLA mentions a number of problems in the Georgian education system, including an access to education, food during school hours, the ongoing processes in the appointment of school principals, and recalls the recent PISA report, which is “noteworthy and thought-provoking,” – says the statement.
Social Justice Center (SJC)
Another local watchdog, the Social Justice Center (SJC), published a report assessing the human rights situation in Georgia in 2023. The SJC also welcomes the European Commission’s positive recommendation to grant Georgia EU candidate status. However, it warns of the “significant deterioration of democratic space and human rights standards” in Georgia this year. It also highlights several key issues:
Democratic backsliding and EU integration process – The report highlights the significant negative impact that the draft law on foreign agents, if adopted, could have had on civil society organizations, and adds that the government has used extremely aggressive rhetoric against CSOs.
Fragmented reforms of justice and crisis of confidence – The report says that fundamental problems in the judiciary have gone unnoticed. It also speaks of informal influences and corporatism in the judiciary, and refers to the sanctioning of three sitting judges and one former judge by the U.S. in April.
Closed security sector and the SSSG instumentalization – “the main challenges in the security sector remain the broad mandate of the State Security Service (SSSG) and the Operational-Technical Agency, their politicization, a weak accountability system and the ineffectiveness of control mechanisms,” – reads the report.
Politicized law enforcement system and inaction to protect vulnerable groups – The report refers to several issues, including “the practice of disproportionate and unjustified use of police force” in the case of the March 8-9 protests, and notes that in contrast, law enforcement agencies were inactive and failed to protect the Tbilisi Pride Festival, which was disrupted by extremist groups.
Human rights situation of conflict-affected people in 2023 – The SJC mentions the killing of Tamaz Ginturi, a Georgian citizen, by the occupying forces and speaks of those illegally detained by the occupying forces. The right to timely access to health care and mother-tongue education for people living in the Gali and Akhalgori districts are identified as challenges where government failed to achieve progress.
Freedom of religious and religious equality – “Unfortunately, the trend of normalizing religious discrimination continued in 2023,” the report says, referring to a number of cases in which religious minorities found themselves in an unequal situation.
Rights of non-dominant ethnic groups – The SJC talks about the social and political challenges faced by the country’s ethnic minorities. It says that “there are still no permanent consultative platforms at government and parliamentary level where community leaders and activists could have put their challenges on the agenda for decision-makers”. In the political context, the report notes that no changes or mechanisms have been introduced “that would promote the inclusion of minorities in political parties and representative bodies”.
LGBT+ rights – “The ruling party’s rhetoric was openly homophobic in 2023,” the report says, noting that pro-government media outlets have been disseminating anti-LGBT, anti-Western propaganda content. The SJS also notes the legislative initiatives, such as the attempt of the “pro-government party “European Socialists”, which in March 2023 demanded the prohibition of so-called LGBT propaganda.”
Women’s rights – “In 2023, the state’s response and policy on femicide, forced marriage and the practice of violence against women was again inefficient, ineffective and doubly weak in the regions populated by ethnic minorities,” -says the report. The SJC recalls the case of October 6, when a 14-year-old girl was murdered by a 27-year-old so-called “husband,” and says that the local school administration probably knew about it but did not inform the authorities. In this context, the report outlines the challenge of forced marriage. The SJC also talks about the challenges of access to health services for women. It also says that abortion rights have deteriorated. According to the new law, from 2024 women will have to consult not only a gynecologist but also a psychologist and a social worker if they want to have an abortion. Finally, the report notes that women face gender-based hate speech in politics, recalling the use of sexist and offensive language by “Georgian Dream” deputies in parliament against female opposition MPs.
Right of proper housing – The SJC says that the government has no strategy to deal with the problems of homelessness and housing, which makes the problem worse every year. Another problem is access to housing due to financial difficulties that students face in large cities, especially Tbilisi.
Environmental rights and the situation of environmentalists – The report highlights the questions raised by the tragedies that occurred in the Shovi (Racha) and Guria regions, “which resulted in the deaths of more than 40 people.” The SJC questions the adequacy of the state’s response to these cases. It also mentions the cases of attacks on critical media that worked on these cases.
Right of persons with disabilities – The report notes problems that people with disabilities still face in Georgia, including weak and fragile social policies, their isolation from society, lack of statistics related to these people, etc.
System of subsistence allowance – According to the report, in 2023 the subsistence allowance remains the most important element of social protection policy, while “the number of people registered in the base of socially vulnerable persons has increased significantly. The current year’s figures are the highest since 2016.”
Labor rights – The SJC highlights a number of labor rights challenges, including the failure to provide fair, safe and healthy working conditions, inadequate pay for a decent living, unpaid overtime, improper payment for maternity leave, lack of vacation and holiday opportunities, etc. “Many formal guarantees in legislation are not implemented in practice, while some issues remain problematic even in the legislation,” – reads the report.
