On March 22, 2015
five non-governmental organizations -
United Association of Georgia (UNAG), Media Development Foundation
(MDF), Georgian Democracy Initiative (GDI), Tolerance and Diversity Institute
(TDI and European Center of Minority Issues (ECMI) submitted a report on Minority Rights in Georgia to the
UN Universal Periodic Review (UPR).
The organizations express concerns and provide
recommendations regarding the following issues:
- Failure of the Government to investigate
incidents of religious violence against religious minorities;
- Infringement of Autonomy of Religious
Organizations by the newly established State Agency on Religious Affairs;
- Religious Indoctrination at Schools and breach of
neutrality in academic teaching; failure of the Government to return places of
worship to their true owners;
- Manifestation of hate speech, xenophobia and
homophobia by high ranking political officials and politicians;
- Improper self-regulation mechanisms in media and
manifestation of hate speech on the Georgian Public Broadcaster (GPB);
- Access of information in minority languages and
ensuring minority voices to be heard on GPB;
- Ensuring repatriationof deported Meskhetians;
- Integration of Roma population in society.
The UPR was created through the resolution60/251 of UN
Human Rights Council in 2006 and reviews the human rights records of all UN
Member States.