Council of Europe launches new project to fight against discrimination, hate speech in Georgia

A new project on fighting discrimination, hate crimes and hate speech in Georgia will be launched by the Council of Europe and Georgian authorities tomorrow.

The project will look at ways of combining legislative, capacity-building and awareness raising actions to ensure the appreciation of diversity in Georgia and the possibility for everyone to freely enjoy their rights. 

According to the latest report by the Council of Europe’s anti-discrimination body, the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI), "hate speech against ethnic and religious minorities, as well as against LGBT persons, continues to be a widespread problem in Georgia”, despite certain progress achieved by the country on anti-discrimination policies and legislation.

"The project that will run until the end of 2021 builds on long-standing cooperation between the Council of Europe, the Georgian authorities, the judiciary, law enforcement agencies and civil society partners. It is conducted under the Council of Europe’s Action Plan for Georgia,” reads the statement released by the CoE today.

The launch event of the new project is organised in the framework of the European Dialogue on Internet Governance (EuroDIG).