Number of those who suffered at action of LGBT opponents in Tbilisi reaches 55

In central Tbilisi, at the action held by opponents of the “March of Dignity”, 55 persons suffered, including 53 journalists, the Georgian Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) has informed. Human rights defenders have accused the police of inaction.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on July 1-5, in Tbilisi, activists of the LGBT community held the "LGBT Week", which they planned to end with a “March of Dignity” in the city centre. On July 5, several hundred opponents of the gay parade blocked Rustaveli Avenue and attacked journalists. The organizers of the "March of Dignity" ultimately abandoned the action altogether.

Eight people were detained on July 5 during the riots in central Tbilisi, the “InterPressNews” reported with reference to the Georgian MIA.

A total of 55 people suffered at the action; 53 of them are journalists, the police have stated.

A foreign tourist suffered in central Tbilisi during the riots, the "Mtavari Arkhi" TV Channel has reported. The tourist was attacked because he had an earring in his ear. He was stabbed in the chest and abdomen, the “Rustavi-2” TV has reported.

The police were idling, Ucha Nanuashvili, a rights defender, told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent. “There was no attempt to prevent the attack on journalists,” he has added.

The police’s inaction was also condemned in a statement released by the NGO “Multinational Georgia”. "We see the inadequacy of police’s actions during the dispersal of opposition rallies and during the actions related to violence against the opposition or unprotected population groups," Arnold Stepanyan, the head of the NGO told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on July 6, 2021 at 01:05 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.