The Daily Beat: 26 April
Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili is set to push an anti-LGBTQ message at an ultra-conservative gathering in Hungary. Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvilil will participate in the second annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) organized by the Budapest Center for Fundamental Rights, scheduled to be held in the Hungarian capital in the early days of May. The Center, in its tweet, hailed the Georgian prime minister’s participation and further noted that “gender propaganda has not been kind to Georgia, but Garibashvili believes that activists and politicians must respect the will of the majority, and the vast majority of Georgians reject propagandistic, demonstrative LGBTQ pressure.”
The Media Advocacy Coalition, a local media watchdog, released a statement calling for harmonizing the Broadcasting Act with EU legislation to facilitate the attainment of EU candidate status and retain Georgia’s partial membership in the “Creative Europe” EU program. The coalition stated that the Parliament must bring the Georgian Law on broadcasting in line with European legislation by the end of May to meet the deadline.
Lawmakers of the ruling Georgian Dream party questioned the credibility of the recent IRI public opinion poll, describing it as embarrassing and misleading. In the meantime, opposition politicians believe that the IRI poll indicated a sharp decline in the ratings of the Georgian Dream and signaled some positive trends, including the beginning of the end for the ruling party. The IRI poll published on April 25 suggests strong public support for joining the EU, a lack of trust in political parties, and dissatisfaction with the presence of Russian citizens in the country.
Another Georgian fighter, Zurab Odishvili, who reportedly served in the 92nd brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, has been killed while fighting against the Russian invasion in Ukraine, said Lado Gamsakhurdia, the commander of the “Caucasian Legion,” a military unit made up of volunteer fighters. The Foreign Ministry has not yet confirmed the death of Zurab Odishvili. This latest casualty, if confirmed, will bring the unofficial death toll of Georgian fighters in Ukraine to 43.
