A package of legislative amendments has been initiated in the illegitimate parliament of Georgia, which envisages the complete removal of the term “gender” from legislative acts and the abolition of gender councils. The aforementioned amendments contradict constitutional values, local and international standards of human rights protection.

The explanatory note to the draft law states that the draft law does not affect the state of gender equality, which is not true. The initiated draft law, in fact, completely eliminates the possibility of responding to gender-based discrimination and causes irreparable damage to the guarantees of the right to equality in Georgia.

Removing gender from legal language will lead to the elimination of essential legal protection guarantees related to the enjoyment of the right to equality, especially for marginalized groups. The use of the term “gender” is crucial in terms of recognizing and protecting the gender identity of individuals. Legislative changes will lead to the deepening of inequality and the strengthening of gender discrimination in employment, education and healthcare, social and other areas.

The legislative amendments contradict a number of universal documents protecting women's rights, including the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and the Istanbul Convention, by ratifying which the Georgian state undertook the obligation to develop policies and create protection guarantees for gender equality and against gender-based violence.

The Coalition for Equality believes that the disappearance of the term "gender" from the legislative space is part of the state's inequality policy, which is an undemocratic, illegal action directed against the development of society and will bring serious negative consequences in terms of eliminating discrimination and guaranteeing the right to equality in Georgia.