Protesters burnt a homemade 'rainbow flag’ prior to the premiere. Photo: Mari Nikuradze/OC Media.
Homophobic protesters threw firecrackers at police and filmgoers and several times attempted to storm the cinema at the Georgian premiere of Swedish-Georgian co-production And Then We Danced. [Read more…]
A promotional poster for And Then We Danced.
Several far-right and ultraconservative groups in Georgia have begun to mobilise against the Georgian premiere of queer romance film And Then We Danced, which is due to hit screens this Friday. [Read more…]
Archbishop Zosime Shioshvili. Official picture.
New allegations of sexual misconduct have emerged against the clergy of the Georgian Orthodox Church. On Tuesday, Dusheti Archbishop Zosime Shioshvili was accused of sexually assaulting a male student at the Tbilisi Theological Academy in the 1980s, when he was rector of the institution. [Read more…]
Archbishop Petre Tsaava leaving the Holy Synod meeting on 31 October. Photo: GPB.
A high ranking member of the Georgian Orthodox Church has accused the head of the Church, Patriarch Ilia II, and other high ranking church officials of having sexual activity with men, including underage boys. [Read more…]
Photo: Minority Azerbaijan.
Two Azerbaijani queer rights groups have reported that several queer sex workers were called to police stations in Baku where they were offered money to hold an anti-opposition rally in support of the police. The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Azerbaijan has called the allegations ‘absurd’. [Read more…]
Queer rights activists in front of the 112 HQ on 17 May 2018 (Photograph: Mari Nikuradze/OC Media)
Opinions towards queer rights have improved among Georgia’s young people, the latest NDI/CRRC polling has found, with a plurality in support of their protection. [Read more…]
(Photo: minorityaze.org)
Queer people in Azerbaijan frequently face hatred, violence, and isolation. Below is the story of one gay man who for years hid who he was from those closest to him, faced violence and rape during his military service, and despite fleeing to Europe, still faces death threats from his family because of his sexuality. [Read more…]
Queer rights activists calling for police protection for Tbilisi Pride on 14 June. (Mari Nikuradze / OC Media)
The organisers of Tbilisi Pride have evacuated their office after two of them received death threats from unidentified numbers. Several ultra-conservative groups organised marches in Tbilisi on Wednesday against Pride. [Read more…]
(Illustration: Dato Parulava)
Giorgi Ptskialadze is a spokesperson and executive committee member of the Georgian Young Greens. He has been involved in queer, feminist, left-wing, and green activism since 2017.
With its focus on personal freedom, Tbilisi Pride fits well into a liberal system in which queer people are used as tools in bigger political games and social solidarity is fast eroding. There can be no equality in Georgia as long as this system stands. [Read more…]
Protest of queer rights activists on 14 June 2019 at the government office. (Mari Nikuradze / OC Media)
Georgia’s Prime Minister Mamuka Bakhtadze has said that the queer rights are not a ‘problematic issue’ in Georgia, despite a homophobic mob surrounding and attempting to attack a small gathering of queer rights activists last week. [Read more…]
