General Proposal concerning Homophobic Opinions Expressed by Tbilisi State University Professor
On December 7, 2017, the Public Defender of Georgia addressed Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University with a general proposal to develop regulations for the prohibition of expression of discriminatory opinions by teachers during lectures.
According to the civil platform No Phobia, one of the university professors used a textbook of homophobic content and expressed homophobic opinions at the lecture.
Since the equality of the LGBT+ community remains one of the major challenges in terms of fight against discrimination in Georgia and since the professor's audience is students, the Public Defender considers that interference with freedom of expression is justified if the professor’s statements encourage discrimination.