A ruling for those attacked in Tbilisi
In 2013, priests led a mob against queer activists in Tbilisi. Strasbourg saw it as state acquiescence.
On 16 December 2021, the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg delivered a ruling that queer activists in Georgia had been waiting for for more than eight years. It concerned a day that is deeply etched in the memory of the Georgian LGBTQ movement.
On 17 May 2013, the International Day Against Homophobia, a small group wanted to hold a silent demonstration in the centre of Tbilisi. Twenty minutes were planned. But thousands of counter-demonstrators, led by Orthodox priests, rushed in. They broke through the barriers and chased the participants through the streets until the police evacuated them. Dozens of people were injured.
In Georgia itself, the attack went largely unpunished. The women's rights organisation Women's Initiatives Supporting Group therefore took the case to Strasbourg together with those affected.
The ruling was clear. The authorities had known the risk perfectly well and yet had only sent unarmed patrol officers. In some places, the police had even opened the barrier for the attackers. The court spoke of official acquiescence and, in part, active participation. It found violations of the prohibition of inhuman treatment, the prohibition of discrimination and freedom of assembly and expression. Georgia had to pay those affected almost 200,000 euros.
The ruling did not become a turning point. Only a few months earlier, violent groups had stormed the events of Tbilisi Pride and attacked dozens of journalists. And in 2024, parliament passed a law to protect "family values" that severely restricts queer visibility. 17 May 2013 therefore remains more than a memory.