The Public Defender of Georgia is responding to the statement of Women's Movement concerning the nomination of Zviad Devdariani as a candidate for membership of the Board of Trustees of the Public Broadcaster.

As the Public Defender stated at the presentation of the candidate, the main criteria for selecting the candidate were his independence, experience, motivation and professional qualifications, which is a priority for the Public Defender, taking into consideration the existing challenges in the Board of Trustees of the Public Broadcaster. In addition, the Public Defender notes that she was not aware of the cases of alleged sexual harassment indicated in the statement and that she learned about them after the nomination of the candidate.

Although the facts of alleged sexual harassment are not legally confirmed at this stage, the Public Defender considers that the candidate's decision to withdraw his candidacy from the competition of the Board of Trustees of the Public Broadcaster is reasonable.

It should be emphasized that protection of women's rights, fight against violence, sexual harassment or other forms of discrimination against women have been and remains one of the main priorities for the Public Defender. Depending on the seriousness of the allegations, it is important for the Public Defender all questions to be answered, the issue to be discussed on the basis of the human rights standard and the right to privacy, dignity and business reputation of the parties to be protected until the establishment of the truth. The Public Defender offers the parties to study their arguments within the framework the Public Defender’s mandate.

The mentioned case refers to the necessity for an effective mechanism for regulating sexual harassment, which would allow parties to protect their rights. The Public Defender once again calls on the Parliament of Georgia to timely ensure legislative regulation of sexual harassment. In addition, the Public Defender expresses readiness to personally meet the parties and protect their rights within the framework of the Public Defender’s mandate.