This submission concerns the implementation of judgments in the Identoba and Others v. Georgia group of cases, specifically Aghdgomelashvili and Japaridze v. Georgia and Women's Initiatives Supporting Group and Others v. Georgia. These cases involve violations of LGBTI rights, including police misconduct and failure to protect peaceful demonstrators from homophobic and transphobic violence.

Submitted by EHRAC, WISG, GYLA, ILGA-Europe and TGEU, this document highlights ongoing concerns regarding the execution of individual and general measures mandated by the European Court of Human Rights. Key issues include:

• Ineffective investigations into the incidents in both cases, with only perfunctory investigative actions, and the risk of expiry of statutes of limitations;
• New broad and regressive anti-LGBTI constitutional and ordinary legislative initiatives in Georgia;
• Inadequate efforts to improve hate crimes investigations in light of contradictory efforts to stifle civil society with the “foreign agent” law, lack of cooperation with civil society, and inadequate data collection on hate crimes, particularly those involving administrative offences;
• Continued restrictions on LGBTI freedom of assembly, particularly in light of anti-LGBTI legislation, the “foreign agent” law, and ongoing violence against LGBTI people and the failure to investigate.

The submission recommends urgent action to ensure effective investigations, withdrawal of proposed anti-LGBTI legislation, improved hate crime data collection, and measures to protect LGBTI rights to peaceful assembly and expression.

Click here to read the submission