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— Michael Novakhov (@mikenov) September 19, 2024
Murder of Kesaria Abramidze in Georgia
On the morning of September 19, police arrested in Tbilisi 26-year-old Beka Djaiani on suspicion of murdering 37-year-old transgender woman Kesaria Abramidze, according to the Georgian Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Abramidze was killed at her home on September 18, with multiple stab wounds found on her body. Reports suggest that the suspected killer was a friend of Abramidze, and the murder followed an argument between them.
The investigation established that on September 18 of this year, in the Didi Digomi district of Tbilisi, during an argument, the accused inflicted multiple stab wounds on K.A., born in 1987, in her own home and fled the scene.
K.A. died on the spot from her injuries.
Surveillance footage released by the “Mtavari” TV channel shows the suspect, 26-year-old Beka Djaiani, initially waiting for the elevator in the building where Kesaria Abramidze lived. At the end of the video, approximately 15 minutes later, he is seen quickly running down the stairs.
Morning scan: what’s big news in Georgia today, September 19:
The brutal murder of well-known transgender woman Kesaria Abramidze has shocked the community. Many are expressing outrage and condolences to her family. Public Defender Levan Ioseliani made a statement: “This… pic.twitter.com/r7UvhNFqSc
— JAMnews (@JAMnewsCaucasus) September 19, 2024
As a result of investigative actions carried out by law enforcement, the perpetrator was arrested shortly after the crime.
The weapon used in the crime, a knife, was seized as evidence, according to the official statement from the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
On September 17, the Georgian Parliament passed a discriminatory and homophobic law titled “On the Protection of Family Values and Minors,” effectively targeting the LGBT community. The bill was approved by 84 MPs. The parliamentary opposition did not participate in the vote, as they are boycotting sessions in full since the parliamentary majority passed the “foreign agents” law.
The changes further worsened the rights of transgender people in Georgia by restricting access to medical services, the process of gender transition, and the ability to include gender identity in official identification documents.
In recent years, several transgender women in Georgia have been murdered in hate crimes:
● Sabi Beriani was killed on November 10, 2014. The attacker stabbed her nine times and then set her apartment on fire.
● Bianka Shigurova, a transgender woman, was found dead in her apartment on February 4, 2016. The cause of death was reported as a gas leak.
● Zizi Shekeladze died on November 22, 2016, after being in a coma for nearly forty days. She had been stabbed in the head and neck.
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— Michael Novakhov (@mikenov) September 19, 2024
On September 19, the National Statistics Service of Georgia (Geostat) published preliminary data indicating that in January-August 2024, Georgia’s foreign trade increased by 3% year-on-year totaling USD 14.701 billion in value.
In January-August 2024, Georgia’s exports increased by 2.5% to USD 4.174 billion, while imports grew by 3.3% to USD 10.527 billion. As a result, the country’s negative trade balance stood at USD 6.353 billion, representing 43.2% of its foreign trade turnover.
In the same period, Turkey was Georgia’s largest trade partner with USD 2.085 billion in trade volume, followed by Russia with USD 1.636 billion, United States with USD 1.279 billion, China with USD 1.235 billion, and Azerbaijan with USD 848 million.
During the reporting period, most of Georgia’s exports went to Kyrgyzstan with USD 746 million, followed by Kazakhstan with USD 538 million, Azerbaijan with USD 476 million, Russia with USD 469 million, and Armenia – USD 412 million.
Most of Georgia’s imports came from Turkey, with a total value of USD 1.762 billion, followed by the United States with USD 1.186 million, Russia with USD 1.167 billion, China with USD 1.033 million, and Germany with USD 769 million.
In January-August 2024, the largest exported commodities were motor cars – USD 1.478 billion followed by ferro-alloys – USD 220 million; wine of fresh grapes – USD 197 million; spirituous beverages – USD 187 million; precious metal ores and concentrates – USD 148 million; natural or artificial mineral and aerated waters, not containing added sugar – USD 112 million; waters, mineral and aerated waters, containing added sugar – USD 93 million; nitrogenous fertilizers – USD 81 million; medicaments put up in measured doses – USD 75 million; gold unwrought or in semi-manufactured forms, or in powder form – USD 67 million; other commodities – USD 1.516 billion.
Major imports were motor cars – USD 1.978 billion; petroleum and petroleum oils – USD 881 million; followed by medicaments put up in measured doses – USD 416 million; petroleum gases and other gaseous hydrocarbons – USD 259 million; automatic data processing machines and units thereof – USD 210 million; telephone sets and apparatus for the transmission or reception of voice, images or other data (including wired/wireless networks) – USD 201 million; motor vehicles for the transport of goods – USD 139 million; bars and rods of iron or nonalloy steel – USD 112 million; cigars, cheroots, cigarillos and cigarettes – USD 103 million; structures and parts of structures of iron or steel – USD 92 million; other commodities – USD 6.136 billion.
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