A special department will be established in the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the main function of which will be the systemic monitoring of hate speech, offensive campaigns and aggressive communication in the public space and the appropriate legal response. The relevant decision was announced by Mamuka Mdinaradze, Vice Prime Minister and State Minister for Coordination of Law Enforcement Structures, at a briefing held at the Government Administration.

According to him, the state is obliged to ensure the creation of an environment where different opinions are protected and at the same time the incitement to hatred, hostility and insults is unacceptable.

As Mamuka Mdinaradze noted, opening the space for debate was the first important step, and from today another important stage begins in this direction.

“A few months ago, the Prime Minister of Georgia, Irakli Kobakhidze, put forward a very important initiative related to the need to open the space for debate. He clearly stated at the time that certain external actors, for years, had been deliberately artificially closing the space for public discussion in order to prevent diversity of opinion, reasoned debates and constructive polemics in society. Instead, external forces encouraged confrontation, strife and polarization. Unfortunately, this process was accompanied by the establishment of offensive and aggressive rhetoric in both political and social life, a kind of standard for both political and public relations.

We, as a responsible government, believe that it is the state’s obligation to ensure the creation of an environment where different opinions are protected, while at the same time inciting hatred, hostility and insults is unacceptable.

Opening the space for debate was the first important step, today, we are moving to another important stage in this direction. As a result of quite detailed, substantive consultations with the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia, the Minister, we agreed that a special department will be established in the Ministry of Internal Affairs as soon as possible, the main function of which will be the systemic monitoring of hate speech, offensive campaigns and aggressive communication in the public space and the appropriate legal response. Of course, this implies any type of public communication that contains hate speech, incitement to hatred, insults and other similar actions. It is fundamentally important that the aforementioned department will act proactively and the response will not depend only on a citizen’s complaint. The agency itself will carry out the preparation of the monitoring, the appropriate legal assessment and, if necessary, will forward the materials to the court itself,” Mamuka Mdinaradze noted.

According to him, the state is obliged to protect the public space from destructive and artificially deepened polarization.

"Similar practices are in place in a number of countries, for example, we can cite Britain, Germany, France, etc., where state institutions actively protect the public space from hate speech and aggressive campaigns. In order to leave no room for speculation, I would like to emphasize that the purpose of this decision is not to restrict freedom of opinion and expression in any way. The foundation of a democratic state is precisely free discussion and diversity of opinions, but at the same time, this, in turn, should not become the basis for justifying violent, offensive and public confrontation-inciting communication. Diversity of opinions and critical discussion are essential for a democratic state, and at the same time, there are minimum standards that society must agree on, including respect for each other and the unacceptability of the type of communication that incites hostility, strife, public tension and extreme polarization. As you know, we already have a resolution passed by the Parliament in this direction. The relevant legislative framework has been adopted, however, legislation alone is not enough and its effective and consistent implementation is of fundamental importance. That is why, in the wake of current challenges, we are strengthening the institutional capabilities of the Ministry of Internal Affairs - the new department will ensure constant monitoring and effective use of the mechanisms provided for by law. The state is obliged to protect the public space from destructive and artificially deepened polarization. Accordingly, the Georgian law enforcement system ensures the establishment of standards and rules that will strengthen public stability, mutual respect and responsible public communication," said Mamuka Mdinaradze.