New Law Makes Sexual Harassment a Punishable Offense

The Georgian Parliament unanimously approved a bill on sexual harassment last Friday, with 102 votes in favor and 0 against. MPs serving in Parliament’s Gender Equality Council, formed in 2004, drafted the legislative package this February.

The Labor Code of Georgia will now include the following definition of sexual harassment: “Undesirable sexual behavior towards a person,” the law reads, “aims or/and tarnishes his/her dignity or creates an intimidating, hostile, degrading or abusive environment for him/her.” Using sexual words, exposing one’s genitals, or any type of verbal or non-verbal actions of a sexual nature will be considered harassment, as well as forcing someone into a sexual relationship against his/her will.

Sexual harassment is now punishable by a 300 GEL ($112) fine and 500 GEL ($187) or one month correctional labor for a repeated offense within one year.

Furthermore, deliberate sexual harassment of a minor, a pregnant woman, someone in a critical medical condition or in the presence of a minor will be punishable by a fine of 500-800 GEL ($187-$299), and if repeated, by a fine of 800-1,000 GEL ($299-$374) or ten days’ imprisonment.

Recent sexual harassment scandals have brought greater public and political attention to the issue.

Last December, an appeals court upheld an earlier ruling that has been named as Georgia’s first sexual harassment court case. Journalist and actress Tatia Samkharadze accused her boss, the famous TV host Shalva Ramishvili, of sexual harassment. Ramishvili appealed the January 2018 ruling of a Tbilisi court, but lost. Activists celebrated the ruling, calling it a “landmark case on workplace sexual harassment in Georgia.”

In another notable case, at least 10 women came forward and accused the head of the nonprofit Civic Development Institute, Zviad Devdariani, of sexual harassment. Devdariani resigned less than a month after the accusations were made, but said later he was planning to sue the women.

Just this week, a famous Georgian weightlifter by the name of Tatia Lortkipanidze announced in a press conference that she has plans to sue the Georgian Weightlifting Federation and its head coach, Temur Janjgava, for sexual harassment and discrimination.

Lortkipanidze was absent from this year’s European Weightlifting Championship, which kicked off on April 6 in Batumi. At the championship’s opening ceremony, President Salome Zurabishvili lamented the young athlete’s absence.

“As a female president, I cannot but resent the fact that Tatia Lortkipanidze, one of our distinguished female champions, could not participate this year due to reasons not clear so far. I hope this is not connected with discrimination against a woman,” Zurabishvili said.

By Lucy Papachristou

Image Source: Flickr