“Tbilisi Pride” week was opened on July 2. The Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Dunja Mijatovic, gave a speech at the opening.
In a speech, she reviewed the rights of the LGBTQI+ community in Europe and Georgia and condemned violence.
“Today we are here to celebrate freedom, to celebrate the love, equality and diversity of all people. We all have equal rights.
We should not forget that just 2 years ago in Tbilisi, brutal violence took place during the “March of Dignity” – an event that celebrated equality and freedom. Journalists and human rights defenders who participated and covered this event were attacked. Many were injured and the event was cancelled.
I want to emphasize that violence is unacceptable. You can disagree with something and express it, but violence is completely unacceptable. And that was my main message that I shared with the Prime Minister and the Government yesterday,” she noted.
According to the CoE Commissioner, some of the member states of the European Council are also characterized by violence against the queer community, which is also condemnable.
“When the rights of one group of society are violated, the rights of all other groups are automatically violated, the society as a whole becomes a target of violence. In my experience, if members of the LGBTQI+ community are attacked, [in the same community] women, immigrants and all other vulnerable groups are attacked. This is something that is unacceptable and no matter what happens in modern, 21st century Europe,” she adds.
She appeals to politicians and other influential people to refrain from derogatory and insulting statements – “to think twice before they launch such an attack.”
“Accordingly, the laws presented by politicians here and elsewhere should be in line with the obligations that the state took upon joining various international organizations. In this case, I am talking about the Council of Europe,” she noted.
Mijatovic claims that he and his team will continue to work on equality, and this should be done by all countries in order to create a society where the rights of all people are respected – “I hope that next year, we will be able to walk freely in the streets of Tbilisi – just like we walk in different European cities.”
“I am proud of Georgia that it has such a strong community and I encourage you to continue fighting for equality and dignity. And let it happen so that love wins, not hate,” she noted.
