Tbilisi. On May 31, 2016, the Public Defender presented a special report about the human rights situation in the country’s mental hospitals to representatives of governmental agencies, international organizations and non-governmental organizations. The report reflects results of the monitoring carried out by the National Preventive Mechanism in 12 stationary psychiatric facilities. ''The report highlights the problem of insufficient funding that ultimately leads to the lack of qualified personnel, inappropriate therapeutic environment; low-quality treatment, care and psycho-social rehabilitation; long hospitalization and unavailability of community-based services,'' is noted in the statement. In full… Source: www.ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. The Human Rights Education and Monitoring Center (EMC) addresses the General Inspection regarding the facts of inappropriate behavior of policemen that the case on detention of LGBT activists contains. ''EMC refers to the facts of illegal use of detention, as well as of violation in terms of homophobic language and religious neutrality, conducted by police staff, and requests the General Inspection under the Ministry of Internal Affairs to study the case and to charge specific policemen with disciplinary liability'' – is stated on the web-page of the organization. In full… Source:emc.org.ge

Tbilisi. Non-governmental organizations respond to the cases of homophobic violence against members and activists of the LGBT community that took place within the period of before 17 May, 2016 and afterwards. ''Despite the fact that similar to the previous years, also this year the LGBT community and activists did not get an opportunity to benefit from the freedom of assembly, tens of sporadic violence cases against members and activists of the LGBT community were identified within the period of before 17 May, 2016 and thereafter. The facts of violence took place on hatred motives due to sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) of alleged victims and were committed by unknown individuals, mostly at night, in a public space'' – is noted in the joint statement. In full… Source:www.isfed.ge

Tbilisi. On 18 May, 2016, the Public Defender addressed the microfinance organization Credo with a recommendation to eliminate discrimination on grounds of pregnancy in labor relations. ''Pursuant to subparagraph "g” of part 3 of article 37 of the Labor Code, it is unacceptable to cancel an employment contract at the moment when an employed woman notifies an employer about her pregnancy, unless there is a ground envisaged by paragraph "b" part 1 of article 37, pertaining to expiration of a contract. The Public Defender considers that the abovementioned article should not be interpreted as if the expiration of a term automatically excludes the possibility of discrimination on grounds of pregnancy,'' is noted in the statement. In full… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. The Georgian Charter of Journalistic Ethics requests the law enforcement authorities to respond to the facts of violence against journalists in Kortskheli. ''The Charter of Journalistic Ethics is concerned about interference in a professional work of journalists and calls on the law enforcement authorities to investigate immediately all facts of harassment of journalists and violence against them and to punish the offenders adequately'' – is stated on the web-page of the organization. In full… Source:qartia.org.ge

Tbilisi. On May 13, 2016, the Public Defender of Georgia addressed the non-entrepreneurial (non-commercial) legal entity "Khulo Union of Kindergartens" with a recommendation to eliminate discrimination on property grounds in pre-contractual relations. "According to the factual circumstances, one of the criteria for employing a teacher in a newly opened kindergarten in the village of Ghurta was the social condition of the candidate's family, evaluation of which was based on oral information received from the local population and the Ghurta village administration,” is noted in the statement. In full… Source: www.ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. On May 20, 2016, the Public Defender introduced the second information bulletin on the rights of conflict-affected population to the participants of the Ossetian forum. ''The document contains information about the Public Defender’s meetings, reports, recommendations, proposals and successful cases of 2015; in addition, it reflects the activities of the Ossetian forum and the Public Defender’s educational and confidence-building efforts. The bulletin also offers an interview with expert Jorgen Johansson, who talks about the relationship between human rights and conflicts'', is noted in the statement. In full… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. The Human Rights Education and Monitoring Center (EMC) publishes an information brochure: Agencies, conducting oversight of working conditions and safety. In full… Source:emc.org.ge

Tbilisi. May 17 is the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia, celebration of which is related to the removal of homosexuality from the list of diseases by the World Health Organization on May 17, 1990. The international day aimed at expressing solidarity and condemning violence, unfortunately, most often becomes grounds for commission of violent acts and hate crimes against the LGBT persons and their supporters. ''The events developed in Georgia showed us that no effective measures have been taken for raising public awareness or establishing the culture of tolerance in the country. A timely, efficient and accountable investigation of hate crimes is still a problem. Three years have passed, however, nobody has been held responsible for the criminal acts committed on 17 May, 2013'', is noted in the statement.  In full… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. On 16 May, 2016, the Public Defender of Georgia presented a short version of the parliamentary report to representatives of the diplomatic corps, the government, international and non-governmental organizations. ''The report reflects past year’s positive and negative trends in terms of human rights situation. 34 chapters of the parliamentary report cover a wide range of civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights and bring together the basic recommendations prepared for the government branches, timely and effective implementation of which would largely contribute to the establishment of high standards of human rights in the country,'' is noted in the statement. In full… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. ''The Public Defender's Parliamentary Report 2015 notes that prior to imposing disciplinary penalties, the prison administration must examine if prisoners’ mental health or developmental disorders could influence their behavior or culpable actions or actions that served as the basis for imposing disciplinary penalties on them. It is unacceptable the prison administration to punish a prisoner for an action which is a direct result of his/her mental disease or limited mental capacity''. In full… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. On May 13, 2016, the Public Defender presented a report on women's rights and gender equality in Georgia to representatives of governmental agencies, international organizations and non-governmental sector. ''According to the Public Defender’s Parliamentary Report 2015, protection of women's rights and gender equality are still challenges in the country'', is noted in the statement. In full… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. On May 13, 2016, the Public Defender of Georgia addressed the Government of Georgia to draft amendments to the law on higher education in order to bring the law in compliance with the principle of equality and to provide every student with the right to participate in the management of a higher educational institution regardless of their association membership. ''The Public Defender considers that the students’ right to be elected to the representative body of the department and participate in the management of the university is unjustifiably linked with the fact whether they are members of a certain association or not, as far as this represents a barrier for students to enjoy their rights and does not have any practical purpose. Such kind of approach without reasonable justification puts non-member students of the self-government in unequal conditions, which constitutes direct discrimination on grounds of association membership,'' noted in the statement. In full… Source: www.ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. We welcome the legislative initiative of the Members of Parliament, Tamar Kordzaia and Tamar Khidasheli, on the definition of sexual harassment and introduction of a relevant sanction in the Administrative Code. ''It is important that this initiative shares the Public Defender’s recommendation and results of the study about the extent of sexual harassment, the covered nature of the problem and the importance of legislative regulation. Unfortunately, sexual harassment is still a spread, but tabooed problem that threatens the well-being of men and women, reduces the quality of work and diminishes the quality of gender equality. Together with the existing attitude in the society, the lack of legislative regulation hampers identification of the problem and appropriate response to it'', is noted in the statement. In full… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. The 2015 parliamentary report notes that the Public Defender had repeatedly addressed the Minister of Corrections with a recommendation to close the penitentiary facility N7 due to its grave living conditions. ''According to the reply received from the Ministry, they cannot make a decision at this point on the complete liquidation of the facility, but it is planned to significantly reduce the number of prisoners in the facility in the near future and to distribute them to other appropriate institutions; it is also planned to completely rehabilitate the facility, to abolish its ground floor and to significantly reduce the limit of prisoners. It should be noted that in February 2016, 19 inmates were transferred from the facility N7 to the facility N6'', is noted in the statement. In full… Source: www.ombudsman.ge

On 2-3 May, 2016, at the 89th session in Geneva the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination considered the combined 6th, 7th and 8th periodic reports submitted by the Government of Georgia on 2 July 2014 in compliance with the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. In full… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. Many infrastructural and social projects were implemented by the state in the villages alongside the dividing line in 2015. Nevertheless, the socio-economic and security situations remain difficult in the conflict-affected Shida Kartli and Samegrelo villages along the dividing line. "One of the biggest problems for locals is finding a source of income. Large part of the rural population cannot use the programs offered by the Ministries of Economy and Agriculture, as the programs are centralized and information hardly reaches the local population. In addition, local farmers and entrepreneurs do not have relevant resources for co-funding, while bank loans are unavailable for them, since they live in high-risk regions. Unregistered lands are also a problem for entrepreneurship”, is noted in the statement. In full… Source: www.ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. One of the issues in the Public Defender's Parliamentary Report 2015 is practical experience and challenges in terms of women's political participation and gender mainstreaming. ''The study results showed that no information is collected, analyzed or published about gender composition of employees by a number of ministries and local government bodies. Majority of workers at the executive level, in the ministries, are women, but they are not on the leading positions. The situation might be linked to the so-called existence of a glass ceiling, the invisible barrier that is a hindrance for women in promotion or participation in decision-making process'', is noted in the statement. In full… Source: www.ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. The Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association files an appeal at the Constitutional Court against a discriminatory rule for funding Muslims from the state budget. ''The resolution of the government does not oblige the Armenian and Catholic Churches to set up one legal entity to get funding, even though the Armenian and Catholic Churches have the same schism (split) between each other as both the Shias and Sunnis. The Armenian and Catholic Churches can obtain funding without uniting, while the Sunnis and Shias must form a common legal entity of public law or representative council'' – is stated on the web-page of the organization. In full... Source:gyla.ge

Tbilisi. The Public Defender's Parliamentary Report 2015 provides an overview of the human rights situation in the occupied territories. The report notes that violation of fundamental rights, such as the right to life, health, education and movement, continues in Abkhazia and so-called South Ossetia. Ethnic discrimination, illegal confinement and other offences are of regular nature. ''Access to education and the right to get it in the native language are particularly problematic in the Gali region. Since the 2015-2016 academic year, students have been taught in Russian in 1-4 grades of the remaining 11 schools where classes are conducted in Georgian, and in other grades the hours allocated for the Georgian language were reduced. Because of this change, some families had to move their children to the territory under the Georgian control in order to enable them to study in Georgian. Shift to the Russian language also significantly deteriorated the quality of education'', is noted in the statement. In full… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. The Head of  ''Young Barristers'' set a precedent on a high-profile civil case with JSC ''ProCredit Bank''. ''The Supreme Court of Georgia has already made a decision on the case of an individual released from the Bank based on signs of religious belief among other reasons. For the first time in the history of Georgia, on a practice of labor disputes and a case of dismissal from banking sphere, the Supreme Court of Georgia has pointed out that one of the three reasons for releasing the woman from the Bank has been a decision made on religious grounds'' – is stated on the web-page of the organization. In full... Source:barristers.ge