Twenty-three Georgian cities hold actions against use of violence to women

On November 25, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, 23 cities of Georgia, including Tbilisi, Kutaisi, Gori, Rustavi, Batumi, Telavi, Akhaltsikhe and Marneuli, held actions "Stop violence against women!"

The NGO "Movement of Georgian Women", which took part in organizing the actions, has appealed to the Government with a call to draft measures to prevent violence.

In their turn, the Georgian authorities have announced a start of a social campaign "Stop Violence!" Starting November 25, for three weeks in a row, all the TV channels of the country will show a video clip against violence. Besides, special information lessons will be given to pupils and students, the "Echo of the Caucasus" reports.

On November 25, the Prime Minister of Georgia Irakli Garibashvili stated that he considers it unacceptable to attempt to justify violence against women by traditions, culture or religion, the "News-Georgia" reports.

"The outrageous acts of violence against women that our country has recently seen show the seriousness of the problem... Violence against women is a problem that cannot be done with by the authorities alone. The whole society must unite with the state in this fight," said the Premier.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on June 20, 2014, in Strasbourg, Georgia signed the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating domestic violence and violence against women. The countries that adopt the document are required to create powerful legal mechanisms to prevent violence, punish offenders and protect victims.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.