Transgender woman murdered in Georgia after country passes anti-LGBTQ+ law
Kesaria Abramidze, 37, was stabbed to death in her flat in the Georgian capital of Tbilisi
By Alim Kheraj
A transgender model has been murdered in Georgia the day after the country’s government passed a controversial law that restricts the rights of LGBTQ+ people.
Kesaria Abramidze, 37, was stabbed to death in her flat in the Georgian capital of Tbilisi on Wednesday night (18 September), local officials said. A 26-year-old man has been arrested in connection with the murder.
Abramidze, an actress and influencer with over 500,000 followers on social media, was one of Georgia’s first public transgender figures, representing the country at the Miss Trans Star International, where she won the popularity award.
“There is a direct correlation between the use of hate speech in politics and hate crimes” – The Social Justice Center, Georgia
In a statement given to local media outlet JAMnews, the Public Defender of Georgia Levan Ioselian said: “This horrifying murder is yet another proof that law enforcement agencies and the public are not aware of crimes committed on the grounds of hatred and gender identity. The response must be particularly strict. I hope that the perpetrator will be punished swiftly and severely.”
Abramidze’s murder occurred the day after the Georgian parliament passed a regressive anti-LGBTQ+ bill that limits the freedoms of queer people in the country.
The ‘Protection of Family Values and Minors’ bill is designed to prevent ‘LGBT propaganda’ and includes a ban on same-sex marriage, gender-affirming care, and adoption by gay and transgender people.
The legislation similarly prohibits the promotion and discussion of LGBTQ+ identities in schools, and outlaws Pride events and public displays of the Pride flag. The government will also censor films and books.
“This law is the most terrible thing to happen to the LGBT community in Georgia,” Tamara Jakeli, director of the campaign group Tbilisi Pride, told Reuters following the passing of the bill.
“We will most likely have to shut down. There is no way for us to continue functioning.”
While the motive for Abramidze’s murder remains unknown, campaigners have linked her death to the rise in anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric, much of which has been perpetuated by the ruling Georgian Dream party.
In a statement, the Social Justice Center, a Tbilisi-based human rights group, said: “There is a direct correlation between the use of hate speech in politics and hate crimes.”
They added: “It has been almost a year that the Georgian Dream government has been aggressively using homo/bi/transphobic language and cultivating it with mass propaganda means.”
Michael Roth, the Social Democratic party chair of the Bundestag foreign affairs committee in Germany, echoed this sentiment.
In a post on X, formerly Twitter, he said: “Those who sow hatred will reap violence. Kesaria Abramidze was killed. Just one day after the Georgian parliament passed the anti-LGBTI law. I am deeply shocked and call on the ruling party ‘Georgian Nightmare; to immediately withdraw the shameful law.”
Tributes to Abramidze poured in on social media.
“Kesaria was iconic!” wrote Maia Otarashvili, a Georgian political scientist and the Eurasia Program Director at the Foreign Policy Research Institute, a think tank based in Philadelphia. “Provocative, wise, incredibly brave! A trailblazer for Georgia’s trans rights. She was fashionable and beautiful and would read you to filth! Her murder is an absolute shock! She did not deserve this!”
“Equality Movement mourns the tragic murder of Kesaria Abramidze, a victim of gender-based violence that occurred just days after the adoption of a homophobic law,” wrote Equality Movement, Georgia’s largest queer organisation.
“We must end intolerance and protect the lives of our community,” they added.
A vigil for Abramidze was held on the steps of the Georgian Parliament Building in Tbilisi on Thursday night.