About the project: Media Development Foundation continues the monitoring of hate speech, xenophobia, homophobia, gender discrimination and anti-Western sentiments in the Georgian media within the framework of the Promoting Integration, Tolerance and Awareness Program (PITA), which it conducts in partnership with UN Association of Georgia. Results of the monitoring will be presented in a monthly bulletin, while the daily data will be available in the No to Phobia electronic database from September.

The main observations

Homophobia: Georgian Dream

Kviris Chronika, 6-12 July

Luka Kurtanidze, Georgian Dream: „Let’s say the truth, now we have an attack by the sexual minorities in Georgia, they are screaming – protect us! I don’t understand from whom they must be protected, while we ourselves need protection?.. When they are trying to support their vice with law, I cannot agree with this… We were talking with Soso Jachvliani two days ago, if tomorrow we receive an invitation saying: “We are happy to inform you that Manana and Lamara are marring. Please, come.” We’ll lose our mind, right?“

Homophobia: other parties

Obiektivi, Night Studio, 6 July

Irakli Batiashvili, Burjanadze-United Democrats: “This huge machine is working to make our consciousness, especially that of the youth, gradually agree with this [homosexuality] being a normal, usual thing, that we should have no reaction on this… These are so-called “values”, so of course, this is very dangerous process .“

Homophobia: Media

Alia, 8 July

The editors’ response to the MDF study:

„Numerous studies have proven that same-sex families have very negative influence on children and quite often even pushes the teenagers to suiide… So, when we read such things, we have a well-founded fear that propaganda of homosexuality seriously endangers our children’s future - should we not write this for the fear not to upset America and Europe? Not a chance!“ We wrote, write and shall write openly about everything that endangers our children, families and country!!!“ 

Alia, 10-13 July

Levan Javakhishvili, journalist: I wonder what Zviad Dzidziguri, Bidzina Gujabidze, Gubaz Sanikidze think – how wearing traditional clothes combines with pederasty?...

The liberasts controlled from the West already threaten that Georgia will become the first post-Soviet country where same-sex marriages get legalized. And these bastards don’t like to joke.

Alia, 19 June

Source: mainfun.ru

„One stupid Indian involved another stupid Indian into the abyss of perversity… Whatever the court decides, this Indian who has lost his manhood cannot be helped anyway, and he will even have to piss squatting!“ 

Rezonansi, 29 June

The newspaper published a caricature with the inscription: "After official legalization of Gay marriage in the US :" He can only beat us for being black now ... " [Georgian translation].

Geworld.ge, 17-23 June

David Mkheidze, journalist: “ These protestant “churches” in their “holy councils” have adopted with great majority of votes the religious same-sex marriages...God, forgive me once again for having to repeat this filth against my will, the filth even seeing and hearing which is soul-shaking for a believing person... Georgian Orthodox Church must have an agreement with the Russian Orthodox Church, so that before restoration of the territorial integrity (it is not a matter of argument, of course, that this is impossible without Russia) we - Russians and Georgians together confront the threat of LGBT!“

Homophobia: Non-governmental organizations

Obiektivi, Night Studio, 5 July

Archil Chkoidze, Eurasian Institute: „There is normal relationship between woman and man, the rest is perversity… Of course, some person may have some physical problem, but this does not mean that this person must give his ass to another person… Medicine has confirmed that people with this deficiency and such pathology from birth are only one or two per cent. The rest are usual people who are perverse in filth and sin.…

Valery Kvaratskhelia, anchor:This is what I wanted to say.

Archil Chkoidze: These people [homosexuals] support each other, you know what it looks like? A drug addict, who is trying to turn another person into drug addict, this another person does this to the third one, so that in the future they are not bad in the eyes of society and there are many like them“...

Alia, 7 July

Avtandil Ungiadze, Orthodox Parents Union: „These organizations [NGO] are in fact initiators and organizers for the perversity to get legalized in our country... This is unacceptable! This is like defying God. This would be a declaration of war on the Georgian people.“

Homophobia: clerics

Obiektivi, Night Studio, 28 June

Ilia II, Catholicos-Patriarch: „The states legalize illegal things, you know from the media and press that United States of America have adopted the decision for the same-sex marriage to be legal in all of United States, in each state. This is a great mistake, and this is what American clerical figures say, and we support this and say that this is a great mistake. A Georgian should differentiate between good and evil, what is acceptable and what is unacceptable.“ 

Geworld.ge, 18 June

Nikoloz Chkhikvadze, priest: „Let’s take 17 May, are the sodomites’ parade and their orgies our rite and tradition?!.. There are sick people and there are healthy people. Sodomites and people with this sin have always been among us and in other countries too, but nobody assaulted their homes, nobody persecuted them. Why should these people show themselves today, why should they walk on Rustaveli?!.. If it goes on like this, tomorrow and day after that we shall have Conchita as president and prime minister.“

Homophobia: Society

Kviris Palitra, 1 July, Kviris Chronika, 6-12 July

Homophobic Facebook statuses

Achiko Nizharadze, singer: "All day the leading TV programs show: transvestites, gays, lesbians, whores… Don’t you have other topics, you uneducated people!?... Let them have a poll and we shall see how many people like their guests - transvestites, gays, lesbians, whores... Why are they conducting PR of these people with non-traditional orientation? Of the people who destroy families, insult religion, he Patriarch, who don’t believe in anything…

Let’s take care of the future generation! We don’t know what results will bring advertizing this horrible thing. Think about it!!!!“

Alia, 10-13 July

Misha Gomiashvili, actor:“ Now they demand equality! Legalization of same-sex marriages!...Adoption of children...Then they will demand from us participation against our will !!!..... And then punishing us!!! Everyone who disagrees with the gay “ideology” will get punished ... They hide behind “human rights” and this anti-discrimination law… Then we’ll recognize incest too… They will soon demand this too!!! The next demand will be legalization of pedophilia… The end of this process is hell ”.

Kviris Palitra, 6 July

Temur Tsiklauri, singer: One of the principles of perversion is to be neither Orthodox Christian, nor anybody!You should just eat and engage in fornication! Why do they want to legalize perversion, which is not accepted by any religion on Earth... Legalization of same-sex marriages is democratic, they say. Is not Orthodox Christianity democratic?! Is it punishment and slavery? Americans adopted same-sex marriage, then they said a man married acrocodile in Mexico, so maybe we should adopt the donkey phenomenon. 

Asaval-Dasavali, 13-19 July

Ramaz Sakvarelidze, political observer: Legalization of same-sex marriages is an insult to the Christian World.

Anti-Western sentiments: Media

Obiektivi, Night Studio, 11 July

Maka Razmadze, anchor: „I will make a very rough outline, let’s say the East reminds us of the kamikadze murderers, explosions, some veils, rough treatment of women, and so on. The West reminds us of the LGBT, gays, some blood-mixing.“

Saqinform, 6 July

Arno Khidirbegishvili, Saqinform editor: "Who will bring and install anti-missile defense systems in Georgia?... USA - #1 master of Georgia… by that time Usupashvili will have legalized gay marriages in Georgia, like in the past he adopted anti-discrimination law on defense of LGBT, and these days he is going to adopt the law on sex change! Meanwhile, his wife Khidasheli will allow pederasts to serve in the Georgian army, like Obama did in the American army. Then they will elect a pederast as Tbilisi mayor, like in New York, and on Rustaveli Avenue a joint military and gay parade will be held! For this they will move Georgian Independence Day from 26 May to 17 May – the LGBT international day“...

Anti-Western sentiments: politicians

Obiektivi, Night Studio, 6 July

Irakli Batiashvili, Burjanadze - United Democrats: „We like not the rule of law, but the fact that gay marriages are legalized, this is what gets highlighted [from the West]… There is propaganda of this, they want to put into people’s brains here, including young people, that being European means the rise of the sexual minorities’ morals… Today we can see how sharp are the reactions from the West on everything, on the May events, and that they directly demanded adoption of the so called anti-discrimination law. This was not necessary at all… They will strictly request same-sex marriages. That this should not be hindered, that this should get legalized. And I can tell you, this will be the end of Georgia, of course.“

Alia, 10-13 July

Elizbar Javelidze, People’s Assembly: „America has been stating for a long time that values are global, they will plant this everywhere, and this includes same-sex marriage.Their vice-president Joe Biden even threatened us with spreading gay marriage all over the world. Some they will force with the force of arms, others will be persuaded by brain-washing... What can you talk about with the people whose president Barack Obama says he had gay relationships when he was young, and when 11 million people are celebrating legalization of this monstrosity? I am sorry, but America is the pederasts’ country!“

Anti-Western sentiments: clerics

Anti-Western sentiments: non-governmental organizations

Anti-Western sentiments: society

Kviris Chronika, 22-28 June

Rezo Amashukeli: “Let these Americans leave us alone, don’t listen to these idiots who don’t care about our nationality and Georgians! Wherever they stepped they brought blood with them… This country is being biologically destroyed, if this government does not take measures right away!“

Tamar Okruashvili, journalist: „What will our “chairman” beyond the ocean say?“

Xenophobia: media

Kviris Palitra, 15 June

The article about the settlement of migrants from Adjara into the temporarily empty houses of the ethnic Greek citizens of Georgia does not represent position of the Greek owners of he houses. The whole article is written in the xenophobic context: the focus is not on the issues of property and provision of housing by the state to the migrants, but on stereotypically depicting ethnic Greeks as the people who evict ethnic Georgians from houses in their own homeland.

Ether Eradze, journalist: „Adjaran Georgians settled into the houses left behind, put doors and windows there and continued with their lives: they got cattle, brought empty lands in order. This interested the Greeks and they began to return to the houses they had left dozens of years ago… They say: there we suffocate in heat, here it is cool, the house is ours, so why should not we spend summers here! Georgians leave the house without argument… In village Sakdrioni the Surmanidze family with 4 children, whose eldest child was 7 and youngest – 9 months, has already been evicted from the house where they spent 7 years by a Greek old person.“

Kavkasia, Spektri, 16 June

David Akubardia, anchor: We are a civilized nation. In some African tribes they kill everyone during floods. They are wild but we are a civilized country.

Xenophobia: parties

Xenophobia: former representative of government

Asaval-Dasavali, 13-19 July

Levan Mamaladze, former governor: „This bastard – many historians are needed to clarify Misha’s [Saakashvili] biological origin.“

Religious discrimination: media

Asaval-Dasavali, 15- 21 June

Dito Chubinidze, journalist: „If Richelieu did everything to destroy French Calvinists or Huguenots and to let Catholicism flourish,the godless Mishelieu [Mikheil Saakashvili] sent Jehovah’s Witnesses and a thousand of Bokerias against the Patriarchy in order to destroy the Holy Apostolic Church of Georgia!“

Alia, 9 July

Headline: Why the Orthodox congregation does not want a Muslim boarding school to open in Kobuleti.

Journalist: „I will, tell you why we think they don’t want this – we have a lot of examples of how they are trying to pressure the Orthodox Christians with the dirtiest means, so the people naturally get a defensive mechanism. Let’s recall the fact when a Georgian priest was kicked out of Saingilo by Azerbaijan, let’s remember how some people insult our Patriarch. So, as a result, people have fear and react accordingly.“ (Source: kvira.ge)

Religious discrimination: society

Public Broadcaster, Pirveli Studia, 26 June

Mamuka Areshidze, Caucasus expert: „After all, we practically have a Salafi mosque in the capital of Georgia. There is a Salafi, or in other words Wahhabi mosque in Fonichala. .. There are many blind spots in the legislation, which hinders the state in the fight against this illness..“ 

Religious holiday

Interpressnews widely reported congratulations of Georgian high-level officials to the Muslim citizens of Georgia regarding the Ramadan, but position or comments of the Muslims themselves were not represented.

Recommendation: Inclusive reporting on diversity issues means that minorities must be not just objects but also subjects of journalists’ reporting, and media should represent their viewpoint as well.

Gender stereotypes: politicians

Soso Jachvliani, member of parliament: „I have never went to whores then or now. It was insulting for me to pay 10 rubles. I managed these issues without 10 rubles. For your information, I have worked with all beautiful ladies in the Soviet cinema, without 10 rubles… Ms Eka Kherkheulidze tried to break up my family. Several months ago she said that there was no quorum on a session of Parliamentand that Soso Jachvliani was at EBRD. Why do you insult me, Ms Eka? I cannot be at EBRD – I am a faithful husband."

Gender discrimination: media

Kviris Chronika, 13-19 July

Respondent: „We don’t know, maybe this girl [victim of domestic violence] did something that made her deserve death actually...“

Gender stereotypes: media

Kviris Chronika, 13-19 July

Giorgi Jikiashvili, journalist: „Nor her another half would warm his ass in the chair of the Speaker of Parliament“.

Kviris Palitra, 15 June

Article „The girl is mine and I will wed her to whomever I want“ (?!) touches the problem of early marriages in the villages populated by Azeris. It represents position of the local men only and, without any statistics, makes the generalization that ethnic Azeri girls don’t go to school and finish 3 years at school at most. No examples are presented of the Azeri girls who not just finish high school, but get higher education as well.

Editors: „Situation in the Azeri villages is very difficult. No woman knows Georgian, children don’t go to school and cannot get education. The girls finish 3 school years at most, then parents take then to work in highlands or fields. At the same time, the girls in the fifth year are engaged or married. They say this is their tradition.“

Ahmed Samedov, local resident:“The girl is mine and I will wed her to whomever I want.“

Gender stereotypes: priest

Kviris Chronika, 15-21 June

Antimoz Bichinashvili, former archimandrite: „How can you talk like a gossiping woman about the Patriarch of Georgia for 40 years, and old man over 80 years old! But you have nothing of a man“.