The Public Defender of Georgia addressed the Adjara Television and Radio of the Public Broadcaster with a general proposal regarding the dissemination of homophobic opinions.

The Public Defender’s Office began examination of the case on the basis of a citizen’s application, in which the applicant requested an effective and efficient response from the Broadcaster to restore his rights, including in relation to a specific journalist who disseminated homophobic opinions about him live on air to a wide audience.

According to the Public Defender, the use of homophobic expressions against a person constitutes an act that violates honor and dignity, and infringes on the individual’s right to free development of his personality. At the same time, it has a damaging effect not only on the addressee of the expression, but also on the population as subjects of media law.

The Public Defender determined that the broadcaster, in accordance with ethical and professional standards, was obliged to ensure an environment free from incitement to discrimination in the broadcast airwaves, and to use lawful, timely and comprehensive mechanisms in response to manifestations of homophobia and hate speech, both to protect and restore the rights of the interested person, and to prevent the spread of homophobic hate speech.

In a general proposal, the Public Defender called on the Public Broadcaster’s Adjara Television and Radio to, on the one hand, conduct a lawful, comprehensive and impartial legal investigation into all cases of dissemination of homophobic content and hate speech in the broadcasting space in the future, and on the other hand, to carry out effective activities on issues of equality and prevention of hate speech in order to raise the awareness of employees.

The interests of the applicant were represented in the Public Defender’s Office by the Equality Movement.