Tbilisi. We, the signatory non-governmental organizations express our concern regarding a August 23, 2016 racist statement that Mr. Zaza Mamaladze, the Saburtalo District majoritarian candidate of the ''Patriot Alliance'' has made in the air of Media-Union ''Obieqtivi''.

''It is alarming, that when a political party chooses to communicate with the voters by capitalizing on hate speech and intolerance, instead of focusing on the issues, which public opinion surveys indicate are the most important for the voters.

ECRI 5th Cycle Report has paid special attention to the usage of hate speech in the Georgian political discourse. MDF Content analysis Report has also paid attention to the incitment of hate speech by the Patriot Alliance.

We call on the Patriot Alliance, and on its individual members, to denounce hate speech as their choice of communication, and to employ the self-regulating mechanism and react to each and every expression of hate speech during the pre-election campaign, so that intolerance directed towards particular groups are not turned into a means to achieving their own electoral goals and electoral results,'' is noted in the joint statement.

Source: www.isfed.ge