Changes in the laws against sex-offenders in Georgia
By Inga Kakulia
Monday, March 25
The main goal of the new law is to prevent such crimes at an early stage and to have the offenders on permanent control, even after they have served their time in jail.
According to the update, the sexual harassment of a minor will now equal a life sentence. Meanwhile, the court retains the power to deprive the sexual offender of multiple rights. Including but not limited to working at educational and child care establishments or the right to be nearby them, as well as the right to live together with a minor.
Within the update comes the database of all registered sex offenders.
According to the 2018 national research of violence against women, discrimination and mistreatment of women still have strong roots within the community.
According to the recent UN research, 20% of women said they’ve experienced some sort of sexual harassment, while 2.7% of them, aged 15 to 64 said that they had experienced sexual harassment coming from someone other than their partner.
The new law reinforces the general shift in the outlook of the society regarding this topic. The UN research showed that the number of people who consider that sexual harassment or domestic abuse should be solved within the family has reduced by half since 2009.
While the new laws are definitely a step in the right direction, there is still a lot to be done about the actual execution and practice of the said laws. It is too early to tell whether or not the update will be successful.
It’s important to discuss the context of the change and look at some of the most prominent cases of sexual harassment in the recent Georgian history that prompted the government to apply such changes.
One of the prominent cases is from 2016. 22-year-old Salome Zandukeli was raped and sought legal action immediately. Her story depicts the acts of pure indifference and disregards coming from everyone starting from the people around her all the way to the police workers. They failed to effectively respond to her complaints because of her “looks”.
Unfortunately, women in Georgia rarely report a sexual assault due to the stigma that surrounds it. The unprofessional and prejudiced attitudes towards rape victims affect the likelihood of them reporting the case. It is a common belief within the Georgian community that it’s better to keep silent about these topics and experiences because they can cause great damage to one’s “reputation”. These are the challenges women today face when trying to seek help and hold the offenders accountable for their actions.
According to the Minister Deputy of Internal Affairs, Natia Mezvrishvili, the increase of reported cases points to the shift in the attitudes of the society towards the issue. “More and more Teenagers, teachers, and psychologists report the cases, which is a good tendency” said Mezvrishvili. It means that society has raised its awareness regarding the problem.
The suggested database of registered sex offenders will make sure to monitor the behavior of convicts after they have served their time.
The changes in the law and the attention to the situation came after the statistics were made public. The number of reported sexual harassment or violence cases has increased in the last year. While some attribute the increase to the lessened stigma or more willingness from the victims to speak up, others believe that the number of sexual assaults has increased in general. Even though, these claims aren’t backed by any substantial evidence. The fact is the number of reported rape/sexual harassment cases have gone from 56 in 2017 to 98 in 2018.
Even as the opinions on rape and womanhood shift in society, there are still multiple challenges and barriers for women dealing with sexual harassment. Most importantly on the administrative level. People responsible for taking action against predators take the offender’s side, refuse to listen to the victims and don’t take all the necessary action to ensure the safety and justice for these women.
Also, the issue of femicide is as relevant as ever. Women’s rights activists are working hard to ensure that femicide (gender-based hate crime against women) is classified as a separate offense from homicide. In order to combat violence, there are various organizations dedicated to covering the cases of violence against women. One of the organizations is called “Femicide” and is financed by the European Union. The organization seeks to uncover and publish all the stories of these cases to raise awareness and highlight the hostile environment in Georgia.
Another dimension of the said problem is sexual harassment in the workplace. One of the characteristics of a patriarchal society is that men with authority often tend to abuse their power to harass and force their female coworkers into engaging in sexual relations with them.
The case that Tatia Samkharadze brought against a public figure Shalva Ramishvili in 2016, marked the first precedent in Georgian juridical history when the perpetrator was found guilty of workplace sexual harassment.
This is an issue that isn’t exclusive to Georgia, but some of the traditions and the religious background of the country contributes to the more prominent misogyny and disregard for women’s rights.
One of the recent developments in preventing violence against women is the added feature to the national emergency hotline. With the support of the UN Women and EU, the Emergency and Operative Response Center of the Ministry of Internal Affairs will now have a new section in their app directed towards domestic violence. It will help interested individuals to easily find information about different types of domestic violence. As well as what to do if they or someone they know are experiencing domestic violence. The app also provides extensive information about state services available for victims of violence: shelters, crisis centers, and a hotline.
In 2018, there were 116 convicts guilty of sexual harassment against minors. In order to combat that, Ministry of Internal Affairs launched a program in February dedicated to the reintegration of victims of sexual harassment and rape into their community. The program provides psychological support for the victims and the witnesses of sexual abuse.
The progress has been made on bureaucratic and juridical levels. But there is still a long way to go for Georgia. There are multiple foundations and organizations currently dedicating their time to raising awareness and encouraging young women to speak up and take control of their lives. Even though today, it is easier to get support in case of rape or sexual harassment, some women aren’t fortunate enough to be born into families and communities that will help them in this case. This is why the new update to the Emergency Center and all the work done by organizations aimed at protecting women is important. It has to be made sure that these changes don’t just stay surface level but bring about actual change for women that have to deal with gender-based hostility on an everyday basis.