Georgian ombudsman urges politicians to avoid unethical remarks about children
Chergoleishvili scandal over children’s photos
Georgia’s ombudsman Levan Ioseliani has urged political parties, public figures and the media to show a high level of political and social responsibility and refrain from unethical statements, especially when such rhetoric directly or indirectly concerns children.
“It is unacceptable to use hate speech, to spread, encourage or justify hatred in response to a different opinion or someone’s social media post,” the ombudsman’s office said.
The statement came in response to a scandal involving Tamar Chergoleishvili, leader of the opposition party Federalists, who posted photos of her political opponents’ children on Facebook as part of an argument.
What happened
A well-known Georgian politician, Tamar Chergoleishvili, leader of the Federalists party, sparked a scandal on Facebook after posting in support of Tea Tsulukiani, the deputy speaker of parliament from Georgian Dream. The move was unexpected, as Tsulukiani is usually the target of criticism from all opposition forces.
This time the controversy was personal: on social media, people were making unethical comments about Tsulukiani’s possible second marriage. Chergoleishvili came to her defence, saying such attacks would not have happened if Tsulukiani were a man. She called those “laughing” at Tsulukiani “pigs” and asked: “Why did you stay silent about president Mikheil Saakashvili’s ‘harem’?”
Chergoleishvili then faced a storm of criticism on Facebook. In response, she lashed out with foul language and posted photos of the young children of those who had attacked her online.
After complaints demanding a criminal case against her, Chergoleishvili deleted the photos and her posts and issued an apology.
The marriage row then turned political. Tina Bokuchava, head of the opposition United National Movement, demanded that Chergoleishvili be expelled from the “Group of Eight” – a bloc of parties that had jointly declared a boycott of the 4 October local elections.
“I will never have anything to do with a politician who swears at children,” Bokuchava wrote on social media.
Chergoleishvili replied that it was impossible to exclude her from the “Group of Eight” because “it is not a platform or an alliance, but simply a gathering of parties boycotting the ‘October farce’.”
Ombudsman’s statement
“It is important that every member of society fully respects the rights of children and takes special care to avoid causing harm to minors through public statements.
A politician’s family status can only become a matter of public interest if it is directly linked to their public role – for example, in cases of conflict of interest or abuse of power.
In a democratic society, attention should be focused on the substance of political decisions, their impact and their consequences for citizens,” the ombudsman’s office said.
Chergoleishvili scandal over children’s photos
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