Georgia has seen a high-profile arrest in the brutal murder of transgender woman Kesaria Abramidze, a well-known 37-year-old model and one of the country’s most publicly transgender persons. Her body was discovered in an apartment in Tbilisi on September 18. Police promptly detained a 26-year-old man suspected of committing the murder. Investigators believe that during the conflict he stabbed Abramidze multiple times and then fled the scene.
The detainee’s identity has not yet been officially disclosed and is mentioned under the initials B.J. However, Georgian and international media have already reported that he worked as a security guard in one of the capital’s bars. The victim died on the spot from multiple wounds, and the police seized a knife allegedly used in the murder as evidence.
The case is being investigated under the article of premeditated murder committed with particular cruelty and on the grounds of gender hatred, which threatens the perpetrator with imprisonment for 16 to 20 years or life imprisonment. Surveillance footage of Abramidze’s house, circulated by TV channels, recorded a man resembling the suspect waiting for the elevator and hurriedly leaving the building through a flight of stairs.
According to acquaintances of the murdered woman, she was repeatedly threatened and abused by the detainee. The suspect’s attorney said his client had exercised his right to silence and has not yet testified. Formal charges are expected to be filed in the coming days.
This tragic event caused a wide public outcry in Georgia, especially against the backdrop of the adoption by Parliament of a law restricting the rights of the LGBTIQ+ community. Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili expressed her condolences on social media, writing, “Horrible murder! This is an extreme form of denial of humanity. Perhaps the death of this young woman can wake up a society mired in hatred and make us become more human and Christian.”
The murder comes just a day after the Georgian parliament passed a new law targeting the LGBTIQ+ community as part of the ruling Georgian Dream party’s election campaign. This law restricts transgender transitions and bans the public discussion or promotion of same-sex relationships. Protests have already taken place in Tbilisi against the new law and in memory of murdered Kesaria Abramidze. In front of the parliament building, activists lit candles and unfurled posters calling for the repeal of the “fascist” law.
Activists and human rights defenders believe that Abramidze’s murder is a wake-up call for the entire LGBTIQ+ community in Georgia. LGBTIQ+ activists claim that the hate rhetoric coming from the authorities and far-right groups is only increasing. More than 30 civil organizations have asked the president to veto the new law, saying it legitimizes discrimination and violence.
The adopted law “On Protection of Family Values and Minors” significantly tightens restrictions on LGBTIQ+ people in Georgia. It prohibits surgery related to transgender transition and medical procedures supporting gender reassignment. Advertising and dissemination of information promoting transgenderism or same-sex relationships is also prohibited, including in educational programs and on public platforms.
In addition, any public events such as rallies or marches related to LGBTIQ+ topics are banned. The bill drew criticism from both civil society and the European Union, which called on Georgia to revise the law, stressing that it violates fundamental human rights and leads to the stigmatization of part of the population.
Amidst growing rhetoric of hate and discrimination, the death of Kesaria Abramidze was yet another tragedy for Georgia’s LGBTIQ+ community, who are fighting for their rights amidst increasingly restrictive laws and a hardening public atmosphere.
VirusOFF is deeply saddened by the tragic death of Kesaria Abramidze and expresses its full support to the LGBTIQ+ community of Georgia in this difficult time, calling for respect for the rights and dignity of every person regardless of their gender identity.