The rapid consolidation of authoritarianism in Georgia, the narrowing of civic space, and the undermining of human rights significantly harm women's rights and their situation in the country, - this is stated in a declaration by the Georgian Young Lawyers' Association (GYLA).

GYLA issued a statement in connection with International Women's Day, noting that instead of addressing numerous challenges to gender equality, “Georgian Dream” itself uses gender stereotypes, disinformation, and insults as tools to consolidate power.

The statement emphasizes that even the insufficient progress Georgia had made in protecting women's rights up to 2024 is being sacrificed to the practices of “consolidating authoritarian power.”

“International Women's Day is marked on March 8. Ensuring substantive equality between women and men, creating opportunities for the development of women and girls, and combating gender-based and domestic violence are obligations enshrined in the Constitution of Georgia and international law.

The rapid consolidation of authoritarianism in Georgia, the narrowing of civic space, and the undermining of human rights significantly harm women's rights and their situation in the country. Instead of overcoming numerous challenges to gender equality, ‘Georgian Dream’ itself uses gender stereotypes, disinformation, and insults as tools to consolidate power.

It is noteworthy that cases of gender-motivated insults and violence by police against female participants in protest actions in 2024-2025 remain without effective investigation to this day. In addition, in 2025, numerous persons detained under administrative and criminal procedures, including women, reported that after detention they were forcibly fully stripped under the pretext of personal search/inspection. This practice contradicts international human rights standards and aims to place detainees in a vulnerable, dignity-violating, humiliating position.

When one of the main institutions responsible for the state's response to gender-motivated violence - the police - itself demonstrates sexist and intolerant attitudes toward women, which the state encourages and supports through impunity, it undermines the already fragile trust in state mechanisms among women and victims of domestic violence, and fosters a general environment of violence and inequality.

At the same time, anti-gender, discriminatory narratives continue to be actively used to justify authoritarian tendencies. In 2025, ‘Georgian Dream’ completely removed the term ‘gender’ from legislation. The legislative changes are based on a false, disinformation narrative claiming that ‘through active lobbying by foreign influence and their representatives, the artificial term “gender” was deliberately introduced.’ In reality, according to the Istanbul Convention, the term ‘gender’ refers to socially constructed roles, behaviors, activities, or attributes that society considers appropriate for women or men. Certain roles or stereotypes contribute to undesirable and harmful practices and acceptance of violence against women. According to the explanatory report of the Istanbul Convention, violence against women and domestic violence must be understood in a gender perspective, which should serve as the basis for measures aimed at protecting and supporting victims of violence. The removal of the concept of gender from legislation is not merely a terminological change - it undermines years of efforts to combat gender-based violence, creates grounds for ignoring the gender perspective on violence or inequality, and disregarding social and cultural factors, which significantly complicates systemic and fundamental efforts to address the problems.

Moreover, the homophobic/transphobic laws adopted by ‘Georgian Dream’ in September 2024 remain in force. These laws are based on hate-filled narratives and disinformation related to gender identity and sexual orientation; like other legislative initiatives, they were adopted without democratic engagement, expert participation, or input from other segments of society, and are incompatible with human rights.

In parallel, numerous issues related to violence against women and domestic violence remain challenges and constitute obstacles on the path to achieving substantive equality.

Despite years of advocacy by human rights defenders, in several respects Georgia's legislation remains incompatible with the standards of the Istanbul Convention. The most striking example is the legislative definition of rape, which, instead of focusing on the absence of consent, still emphasizes the element of violence.

Challenges include insufficient and ineffective responses by law enforcement to cases of violence against women and domestic violence, the lack of comprehensive investigation of crimes committed on gender grounds, and inadequate effective protection of victims; due to incorrect interpretation of the law, refusal to assess risks and issue restraining orders in cases of gender-based crimes.

Problematic is the lack of information campaigns for society on violence against women and domestic violence, on the one hand, and qualification enhancement programs for professionals, on the other. For years, poor coordination among various institutions has been a problem in identifying and preventing different forms of violence, including early marriage.

Women's participation in public, political, and economic life also remains a challenge. In its concluding observations published in February 2026, the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights expressed concern over gender stereotypes and discrimination against women in society, noting that this leads to the disproportionate and unremunerated burden of care and household work on women, which hinders their full and equal participation in the labor market and limits their representation in decision-making positions. The Committee was also concerned about women's concentration in lower-paid employment sectors, contributing to the existence of gender-based pay gaps. The Committee further expressed concern over the relatively high poverty rate among women.

Sexual harassment of women in the workplace remains a widespread problem. It is alarming that, according to studies, the majority of sexual harassment cases remain unreported.

Against the backdrop of the challenges discussed above, through actions and legislation directed against civil society, ‘Georgian Dream’ further restricts women's and girls' opportunities to receive legal assistance and benefit from support services. The destruction of civic space also limits civil society's ability to raise awareness and advocate for gender equality, portraying such efforts as ‘lobbying for foreign influence ideology.’ This clearly shows that even the insufficient progress Georgia had achieved in protecting women's rights up to 2024 is being sacrificed to the practices of consolidating authoritarian power,” - the statement reads.