Georgia’s President awards activist photographer with Medal of Honour for disability activism

Ana Goguadze, a Georgian photographer, initiator of projects for children and activist for the rights of people with disabilities, has been distinguished with the Medal of Honour state prize, with President Salome Zourabichvili awarding her with the title on Wednesday.

Goguadze was awarded the Medal for her efforts for the people with disabilities, raising awareness on their social issues and a “firm civic position” on the issue.

She received the award at the Orbeliani Presidential Palace in capital Tbilisi, with Zourabichvili describing her as a “prime example of how not to give up in the face of external challenges and difficulties, how to protect oneself and carry out one's duties”.

The President also said “more effort and assistance” was needed both from the Government or the public for the interests of disabled individuals, while also stressing the significance of individual efforts.

She said while the state was “expected to do everything” in the past “under a different system” - in reference to the Soviet era - “today we live in a free country where people's actions are highly significant”.

Goguadze’s work has included a 2016 initiative on making a popular café in the Georgian capital’s Mziuri Park recreational space accessible to people with disabilities, by introducing the Braille script to make its menus available to the visually impaired.

The social activist, herself disabled, has also organised International Children's Day celebrations in the Park, under the Festival of the Sun that marked its 10th anniversary in 2015.

Her efforts for the recreational area also involved a 2021 push to transform its defunct cableway stop structure into a contemporary art space.