“We do not have the right in such a system to speak the way Kobakhidze speaks, saying that ‘if the U.S. wants, it can talk to us, and if not, it shouldn’t come.’ It will not be like that,” said Levan Lortkipanidze of “Social Democracy for Georgia,” commenting on the launch of a new unit within the Ministry of Internal Affairs’ Human Rights Protection Department aimed at combating hate speech.

Speaking on the TV program “Resume” on PalitraNews, Lortkipanidze said that with the creation of this unit, “Georgian Dream” has entered a phase of “absurdity and schizophrenia.”

“What ‘Georgian Dream’ is doing in domestic politics, what kind of policy it is pursuing - traditionally, all authoritarian systems go through a stage of absurdity and transition into a kind of schizophrenia. We are seeing that the state is officially creating an institution that is supposed to monitor Facebook posts. We know very well that this institution will not have enough resources to apply a consistent standard when reviewing these posts, and therefore we will end up with a service that operates with double standards: if you insult the government, you will be arrested; but if the government insults you, no one will hold them accountable. This is the level of absurdity we are reaching.

When you build such a system internally in the country and have such an attitude, you do not have the right to speak the way Irakli Kobakhidze speaks - saying that if the U.S. wants, it can come and talk to us, and if not, it shouldn’t come. It will not be like that,” Lortkipanidze said.

For context, the newly created unit within the Ministry of Internal Affairs’ Human Rights Protection Department has begun operations.

Its main function is to monitor and proactively identify publicly disseminated statements that may constitute degrading, insulting, or hate speech under the Georgian Code of Administrative Offenses.

The unit will identify alleged offenders, determine their identity, prepare administrative case materials, draft reports on administrative violations, and forward them to competent courts in accordance with jurisdictional procedures.