Ombudsman addresses family violence, early marriages in annual report

Protecting women’s rights, gender equality and children’s rights remains some of the biggest challenges facing Georgia, says the country’s Public Defender Ucha Nanuashvili.

More than 2,500 cases of domestic violence were reported in Georgia last year, there were more than two dozen cases of murder or attempted murder of females and hundreds of cases of underage marriage, said the Public Defender in his annual report to Parliament.

The Ombudsman’s 2015 Report for Parliament of Georgia covered a range of topics related to human rights and offered recommendations on how to overcome the issues. 

In the report Nanuashvili openly addressed several major problems in today’s society, mainly domestic violence against women, underage marriage and gender inequality.

Nanuashvili provided official data collected from various state structures to support his comments. In particular, data showed 2,726 cases of family violence were recorded in 2015, involving 5,106 individuals. 

Also in 2015: 

• There were 28 cases of murder or attempted murder of a women; 16 of the cases were committed in a family home within domestic violence. The situation involving the 12 remaining cases varied; and 
• 611 minors registered their marriages. 

The Ombudsman claimed this figure was not accurate as marriages involving underage bride or grooms were not often registered. To support this claim, Nanuashvili said figures showed 1,449 minors gave birth or became fathers last year. 

Furthermore, 408 pupils aged 13-17 suspended their school studied in 2015 to get married. 

On another note, more women than men were employed in state institutions however in most cases women did not hold leading posts.

The Ombudsman said he supported establishing a quota regarding the number of women in Parliament of Georgia to encourage the growth of women’s role in politics. He said women were capable of holding high-ranking positions and this should be valued not rejected.

Nanuashvili urged for more state support for single parents, and he urged the Government to define the status of "a large family” so relevant people could get appropriate support.

The report also said Georgia had a considerable number of drug-addicted women, many of whom had no access to treatment or other support programs. The majority of these women could not access shelters and were often victims of family violence.

Nanuashvili said these women should have access to adequate state support and special services should be developed for these people so they can get off the drugs and rehabilitate into society.

On a lighter note, the Ombudsman positively assessed the availability of shelters for trafficking victims but said institutions performed without clear standards and it was necessary for regulations to be implemented.