Georgian Parliament resumes discussions on amendments targeting “LGBT propaganda”

The Georgian Parliament will resume discussions on a legislative amendment package targeting “LGBT propaganda” on Monday, with the Legal Affairs Committee set to review the bills in their second reading.

Following the Committee session, the legislative package, which includes 19 bills, will proceed to a plenary session for further discussions.

The primary bill, titled On Family Values and Protection of Minors, serves as the foundation for the remaining 18. The amendments, proposed by the ruling Georgian Dream party in March, aim to "strengthen family values based on the union of a man and a woman" and implement mechanisms for the "protection of minors”.

Mamuka Mdinaradze, the Head of GD in the Parliament and the party’s Executive Secretary, announced the amendments in February, asserting they were intended to "protect the public from pseudo-liberal ideology and its harmful consequences”. 

GD formally registered the constitutional amendments in the legislative body on March 25, with Mdinaradze reaffirming the party's “commitment to safeguarding family values and protecting minors”.

To pass the amendments, the ruling party will need to secure at least 113 seats in the 150-member Parliament during the upcoming October 26 general elections.

The proposed amendments, if passed, will prohibit gatherings or the distribution of materials that “promote same-sex domestic or intimate relationships, incest, same-sex couples, or non-heterosexual individuals”. 

They will also restrict the “promotion of adoption or foster care of minors by such individuals, medical interventions related to sex change, and non-use of gender-specific concepts”.