On Thursday, Georgia’s parliament approved a series of bills imposing extensive restrictions on LGBTQ rights.
These bills include bans on the “propaganda” of same-sex relationships and gender reassignment surgery.
Proposed by the ruling Georgian Dream Party, the package could also outlaw Pride events and public displays of the LGBTQ rainbow flag.
The legislation was approved by a majority of deputies and must pass two more readings before becoming law.
Earlier this month, Parliamentary Speaker Shalva Papuashvili announced that lawmakers would vote on the second and third readings of the bills during the autumn parliamentary session, just before the general election on October 26.
He defended the bills, claiming they are necessary to control “LGBT propaganda,” which he argued was “altering traditional relations.”
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The legislation would also ban non-heterosexual people from adopting children, prevent individuals from changing their gender on ID documents, and prohibit public gatherings promoting same-sex relationships.
If approved, “LGBT propaganda” in the education system would be outlawed and broadcasters banned from showing intimate scenes involving same-sex relationships.
LGBT rights are controversial in deeply religious Georgia, where the country’s Orthodox Church enjoys wide public respect.
Opinion polling shows widespread disapproval of same-sex relationships, while Tbilisi’s annual Pride march has repeatedly faced physical attacks by conservative protesters. Georgia’s constitution bans same-sex marriage.
Giorgi Tabagari, founder of Tbilisi Pride, warned that the bills would make life “unbearable” for LGBTQ Georgians.
“The future for queer people in Georgia looks rather gloomy if the anti-LGBT bills are adopted,” he said. The vote occurs amid political tension in the South Caucasus country, following massive protests against a recently signed “foreign agents” bill.
These proposed measures are expected to heighten concerns from the European Union and the U.S. regarding Georgia’s political direction, echoing their criticism of the foreign agent law, which many see as Russian-inspired and repressive.
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