Georgia’s other Russian-style law is fueling a bitter culture war

5 months ago 3

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TBILISI — “No racism, sexism, homophobia or transphobia,” reads a sign in a small vegan café in the center of the Georgian capital, an EU flag pinned across the counter.

“The other day, I was looking at a picture I took in 2013 with my friends who are queer activists, and I realized 90 percent of them have now left for other European countries,” said Atina Bregvadze, a feminist campaigner in Tbilisi, for whom the café is one of just a few remaining welcoming places.

At the same time, outside, thousands of parents, children and priests clad in black robes were gathering in the streets for a rally to celebrate “Family Purity Day,” the public holiday declared by the government to rival Friday’s International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT).

Now, many in Georgia’s LGBTQ+ community fear their small country is running out of space to accommodate both of these very different worlds.

“We love Georgia,” said one middle-aged man attending the jubilant church-led march in traditional dress, declining to give his name. “We want it to stay Georgian.”

Just six months after the country was awarded candidate status by the EU, the governing Georgian Dream party is increasingly trying to present the West as decadent and perverted, and itself as the only true defender of traditional values. Now the ruling party is pushing through an “LGBT propaganda” law to ban what parliamentary speaker Shalva Papuashvili described as efforts to alter “traditional relations, behavior, attitudes and perceptions.”

“I think almost everyone is considering leaving if this law passes — it’s just not going to be safe for us,” said Bregvadze, the feminist campaigner.

The bombshell new draft bill would clamp down on rights for same-sex couples, outlaw changing gender and ban marriages that aren’t “a union of a single genetic male and a single genetic female.” At the same time, it would prevent public gatherings that supposedly popularize “same-sex family or intimate relationships,” which critics say would effectively prohibit Pride events.

Russia has used an almost identical law to persecute those in “non-traditional sexual relationships” since 2013, and last year President Vladimir Putin’s government tried to entirely outlaw “the international LGBT movement.”

‘Russian law’

But the row over the anti-LGBTQ+ push in Georgia has been overshadowed by the widespread public outrage and international condemnation that came when Georgian Dream reintroduced its controversial “foreign agent” law, a bill that would brand Western-funded NGOs, campaign groups and media outlets as “organizations serving the interests of a foreign power.”

Huge crowds have held demonstrations outside the parliament in Tbilisi every night for over a month in opposition to the so-called “Russian law” that would tighten restrictions for civil society. Activists fear it will have the same effect as rules used by the Kremlin to outlaw critical voices, and the EU has said passage of the legislation would torpedo Georgia’s chances of joining the bloc, just six months after it was granted candidate status. Police have used tear gas and water cannons against the protesters without warning, sparking concerns in Brussels and Washington.

But protest organizers suspended activity on Friday, fearing the risk of clashes between those opposed to the government’s increasingly authoritarian turn and far-right activists celebrating “Family Purity Day.” It’s just the latest in a series of decisions many have had to make about their safety in a conservative and deeply religious country, where the LGBTQ+ community has never been widely accepted but is now the target of a raging culture war.

Rights activists have faced a growing tidal wave of violence and intimidation in recent years, and they accuse Georgian Dream of turning a blind eye to far-right groups like Alt.Info that incite hatred, often with the tacit support of influential church leaders. Last year, the Tbilisi Pride event was evacuated after a mob, including members of the clergy, stormed the site as police officers stood by. Georgian Dream says authorities did all they could to maintain order, but videos taken on the day purportedly show officers hugging anti-LGBTQ+ campaigners.

“Georgian Dream plays on the fact that there are so many social, political and economic issues, and there are people who are socially and financially vulnerable, and have all this anger built up,” said Ana Tavadze, one of the organizers of Tbilisi Pride. “And they are giving them a green light to just release that anger, misdirecting it at our community instead of the people responsible for creating these problems.”

Playing politics

That strategy seems to be working and opposition politicians are being put in an increasingly difficult spot — forced to either stay silent on the social issues being weaponized by the government, or play into its hands by championing LGBTQ+ and women’s rights which are far from universally popular with voters.

“We supported and protected the rights of all minorities — ethnic, religious and sexual — during our term in office,” said Petre Tsiskarishvili, a member of the United National Movement party and a minister in Georgia’s previous government. “Whereas Georgian Dream needs and wants polarization for its own political gains.”

According to a 2022 poll, four out of five Georgians support restricting gay people from jobs in education, while 53 percent say LGBT+ people should be banned from holding public events. Compared to previous years, attitudes had been becoming more liberal — but that was before a the ruling party’s media and political campaign to demonize the community had gone into full swing.

On Friday, leading Georgian Dream politicians joined the clergy and others marking “Family Purity Day” in Tbilisi. Former AC Milan footballer Kakha Kaladze, now serving as Tbilisi mayor, was among them, having previously accused anti-government protesters of beating up their own fellow demonstrators and praised police. His office told POLITICO he was too busy to discuss the legislation or the crackdown on activists, but Kaladze has previously blasted as “shameful” calls by the EU for the bill to be dropped. According to him, “LGBT propaganda” poses “a direct threat to our future generations.”

The European Commission in December granted Georgia EU candidate status, handing Georgian Dream a major political win at home, despite its clear failures to meet the criteria for its application to move forward. Among 12 key priorities set out are bolstering “the protection of human rights including by implementing an ambitious human rights strategy and ensuring freedom of assembly and expression.”

The proposed anti-LGBTQ+ law would evidently fly in the face of those commitments. And yet, while the EU has been quick to condemn the controversial “foreign agent” legislation, the passage of the measures targeting sexual and gender identity has faced less intense criticism. That’s likely because any opposition from abroad will be used as proof of foreign meddling, those most affected by the law say.

“Georgian Dream’s narrative suggests that the West is pushing what they call ‘pseudo-liberal ideology’ and LGBTQ propaganda,” said Tavadze, the Pride activist, “when in reality, the EU and the initiatives it supports are simply helping queer people obtain their fair rights. Any support voiced from the EU is weaponized by Georgian Dream and amplified through a propaganda machine.”

“Queer people exist in Georgia; we are Georgian, we are patriots, and we love Georgia — even though it feels like it’s getting more and more difficult.”

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