The monitoring is supported by UNDP. The opinions, observations and analysis expressed in the material belong to Aprili Media.

Rates of homophobia, biphobia, and transphobia, as well as skepticism about gender equality, are still high in Georgia. Over the years, a number of political parties have attempted to use these sentiments to influence the population, portraying gender and sexuality as being in conflict with Georgian traditions, and those who support equality as enemies of traditions.

Manipulating the population’s irrational fears is a common practice in many countries, and Russia is considered one of the leaders, which not only scares its own population with the West and by “taking away” traditions, but also tries to carry out this propaganda in countries where it has political interests. Often, women and queer people are presented as the ones “taking away” traditions, appealing to the superiority of one group, while there is an expectation of obedience from the rest.

In order to win the hearts of voters, homophobic and sexist rhetoric from politicians is especially active during the pre-election period.

Aprili Media monitored political actors in the run-up to (August 26-October 26) and after (October 27-November 26) the 2024 parliamentary elections and examined the narratives about LGBTQ+ and women’s rights that they used to mobilize votes for the elections. Monitors observed the official Facebook pages of political entities, as well as statements disseminated in the press, television, and online media.

Media monitoring was conducted using a pre-developed methodology and specific keywords were used to search for statements. After reviewing the monitoring methodology and key findings, the main part of the study is devoted to the results of the qualitative analysis. In particular, gender misinformation and homophobic narratives identified by political actors in the pre-election and post-election periods are discussed.

Whether in or outside the Georgian Parliament, at briefings or working meetings, in political discussions or in statements made to journalists, the use of sexist and discriminatory language by politicians, misogyny, has been a widespread practice for years. Such behavior is often aimed at humiliating and discrediting women.

Representatives of various political parties often make openly sexist and misogynistic statements, insult women, and encourage hate campaigns against them. Multiple studies by Meta and the Atlantic Council’s Digital Investigative Research Lab have confirmed political parties’ links to inauthentic accounts that, among others, attack, insult, and incite hatred against women and queers.

In addition, in recent years, there has been a trend of politicizing the term gender and using gender-related topics, including disinformation, for political struggle. At the same time, protecting the rights of queers, including freedom of expression, is one of the most important challenges for the state, and organizers of various violent protests often go unpunished. Moreover, over the past two years, representatives of the Georgian Dream themselves have been inciting hate speech and homo/transphobia against the queer community. Political homophobia has intensified, and high-ranking officials of the country are actively making discriminatory statements.

The fact that most political forces are not busy fighting hatred, but rather reinforcing it, often determines the mood of citizens. For years, in surveys asking citizens who they would not want as neighbors, queer communities have been one of the first to be included.

What Was Happening During the Pre-election Period?

The study showed that political homophobia was one of the main pillars of the ruling party for the 2024 parliamentary elections. The main promises of the pre-election campaign were built on homophobic narratives, and the legislative package that restricts the rights of queer people and imposes censorship was adopted during this period. This is the first time in the history of Georgia that a ruling party has used homophobic narratives so strongly in a pre-election campaign.

During the pre-election period, the ruling party used homophobic narratives in two main directions. Namely, by contrasting “traditional values”, “family” and “Christian values” with the queer community. Also, by equating Western values ​​with “LGBTQ+ propaganda”. The impression was that the goal was, on the one hand, to create an enemy image from queer people, and on the other hand, to discredit Western partners.

During the monitoring period, members of the Georgian Dream expressed strong anti-Western sentiments. At briefings, press conferences, during interviews with various media outlets, and during visits to the regions, they cultivated the idea that “LGBT propaganda” is a big problem in the country. Messages were often heard that it is unacceptable to impose “pseudo-Western” values/ideology on people; that “LGBT propaganda” spreads very quickly; that the party chooses traditional values ​​and protects children.

The document states that, along with homophobic statements, Georgian Dream and individuals associated with it have been discrediting opposition parties and President Zurabishvili by instrumentalizing queer rights, portraying them as defenders of queer people.

As for the opposition, the study shows that during the pre-election period, the majority of opposition parties did not express a position at all regarding the adopted legislative package and, in response to journalists’ questions, mostly noted that this was another promise by the Georgian Dream to influence the people. For example:

• Tina Bokuchava, National Movement — “We will not participate in the aforementioned discussion, because we understand the real problems that Georgian citizens face not in the isolated Georgian Parliament, where the government is trying to cover up real human problems with false narratives, but in each region, city or village of Georgia, where we go.”
• Zurab Japaridze, Girchi-More Freedom — “This is a pre-election story, they are trying to win the hearts of those people who were first frightened with this propaganda and made them believe that if we go to the West and become part of the West, which Georgia has always been, something will happen to our children. It is a delusion from beginning to end and they are using these fears for pre-election purposes.”

According to the monitoring, representatives of the “Gakharia for Georgia” party had a different position. They said they intended to support several draft laws included in the package related to the protection of children’s rights in kindergartens and schools, “including the part on restricting propaganda.”

The Girchi party addressed this issue more often, including with partially homophobic and damaging statements — in some cases, the statements did not exclude the “Dream” propaganda narrative or suggested a lack of interest in LGBTQ+ rights on the part of party members.

According to the document, members of the Patriots Alliance rarely commented on the law during the monitoring period. And when they did speak about it, they used homophobic terminology and made anti-Western statements.

Natalia Avaliani

As for women’s rights and sexist narratives,  although the main messages during the pre-election and post-election periods were homophobic, the study shows that, as in other years , this period has not passed without sexist statements from both the Georgian Dream and the opposition. There were cases when women also participated in this process.

The document also highlights the lack of comments from politicians about women’s rights, including as part of election campaigns. In addition, men outnumbered women in the electoral lists submitted by political parties.

What Was Happening After the Elections?

The study notes that in the post-election period, Georgian Dream representatives directly repeated not only the narratives they had voiced during the pre-election period, but even specific words. For example, Guram Matcharashvili continued to claim that the opposition was not letting go of the “LGBT flag” and also made homophobic and manipulative statements about “marrying men.”

On the second day of the elections, October 27, Irakli Kobakhidze highlighted two main messages that, in his opinion, helped mobilize his voters: a referendum between war and peace and the protection of traditional values.

According to the document, already after the elections, the party’s main message was that protecting traditional values ​​was key, which helped mobilize their voters.

In addition, Georgian Dream representatives countered questions regarding the legitimacy of the referendum with a disinformation narrative, claiming that this was due to Russian and homophobic laws.

As for the opposition, the study shows that in the post-election period, they made even fewer statements about the homophobic law and LGBTQ+ rights in general.

What Impact Could This Have?

First of all, it should be noted that the homophobic legislative package adopted before the elections contradicts the Constitution of Georgia, as it is discriminatory and restricts a number of rights guaranteed by the Constitution.

Given that public opinion towards queer people is still divided, and some citizens cannot even imagine living next door to LGBTQ+ people, homophobic pre-election campaigns and hate campaigns perpetrated by political officials may have a significant damaging effect.

The spread of hostile narratives by political actors, a number of cases of attempts to demonize queer people, which were also reflected in the report, may become a green light for a citizen caught in the web of propaganda narratives to act against families, children, and people declared enemies of the nation. In addition, political queerphobia intensifies the feeling of fear and hopelessness of people who are already in a socially vulnerable position, which creates mental health risks. Moreover, all people whose self-expression does not comply with established gender norms are at potential risk.

It should also be noted that families in which queer adolescents/people live are more vulnerable to social attitudes, which may increase pressure on the queer family member, under the pretext of or with the aim of protecting him. Queer community organizations even note that the public discussions of the hate law, especially after its adoption, have significantly increased the number of community members who have needed the services of a psychologist. When the government declares persecution of a person as an election strategy, the number of people who are forced to leave the country and find themselves in an unreliable, uncertain new reality also increases significantly, which is another hardship to the citizen rejected by the state.

Beyond the effects of the law, the spread of queerphobic narratives puts queer and non-conforming people at physical and psychological risk. On the other hand, this situation may create a crisis in service organizations – due to rapidly increasing demand and needs, and limited resources.

As for sexism, it, like all other forms of discrimination, causes significant harm to its target and to those who experience it. In addition, sexism is harmful to all members of society, as it deprives them of the right to exist in an equal society where everyone’s rights are protected, regardless of their gender or other characteristics.

The sexist and homophobic language used by politicians not only violates internationally guaranteed human rights, but also increases the risks and directly harms the lives of hundreds of people. The right to a dignified and equal life is a much higher value than any political process.

See the full document: Gender Misinformation and Homophobia in Pre-Election and Post-Election Statements of Electoral Subjects — Narrative Research