Page 53 - Buy Russia - bne IntelliNews monthly magazine April 2017

bne April 2017 Eurasia I 53
at the moment many Georgians view Christian Orthodoxy as the essence of Georgianness. Over 83% of Georgians adhere to this religion, in a country that opinion polls have shown to be among the most religious in the world.
Ostensibly, the church and the state are separate, reflecting Georgia's aspirations to become a Western-style democracy. But in reality, the freedom and non-dis- crimination guaranteed by the constitu- tion to religious and other minorities
are frequently violated. Meanwhile, thanks to state support, its influence on education and political life, Chris- tian Orthodoxy is thriving to the detriment of all other religions.
The church's popularity has not been lost on political parties of different colourings, which have rushed to kiss the patriarch's hand to get in the electorate's good graces. A survey carried out in 2016 found that 74% of respondents would not vote for a party that had criticised the church.
While the previous administration of the United National Movement (UNM) had a more chequered relationship with the patriarchate, the current ruling party – Georgian Dream – enjoys widespread support from the institution. Officially, the church has to maintain political neu- trality as per a 2012 decision of the Holy Synod, the Georgian Orthodox Church's ruling body. In practice, that decision is rarely enforced and politics frequently makes its way into Sunday mass.
Its own agenda
The Georgian church's standing in local politics is legally tenuous. As per a 2002 agreement or Concordat signed between the patriarchate and the state, the church has a consultative role in govern- ment. However, as the church's power over domestic politics has been increas- ing, so has its financial clout. The same 2002 agreement granted the church the right to financial support as compensa- tion for the damages inflicted upon it during the Soviet period. In practice, that has translated into ever increasing levels of financial state support for the church. In 2014 and 2015, that amount was more than GEL31mn (€11mn).
And, as an investigation by Opende- mocracy revealed, the non-monetary contributions from the state have been equally as generous. In 2014-2015 alone, the patriarchate received trans- fers of 66 real estate properties amount- ing to 65,000 square metres from the government. Most of these properties are used to build religious establish- ments, thus violating the constitutional principle of religious neutrality.
But the church's battle against LGBTQ does not end there. In 2016, a bill made its way into parliament to define mar- riage as the union between a man and a woman. Seeing how gay marriage
is not legal in Georgia, the initiative seemed to have no legal aim. Rather,
it was a token gesture that would have amounted to the government effectively vilifying gay marriage to reflect the Georgian church's position on the issue.
“As the patriarch's health worsens, I expect there to be some power struggles within the church”
Speaking of religious neutrality, the Orthodox Church has been the driving force behind a wave of xenophobic, racist and discriminatory attitudes amongst Georgians. Case in point, the LGBTQ minority has frequently found itself on the receiving end of religiously- fuelled discrimination in recent years.
In May 2013, a small anti-sexual discrimination demonstration staged
by the LGBTQ community to mark the international day against homo- and transphobia turned violent when it
was dispersed by a crowd of Orthodox priests and their supporters. Dozens were injured that day. But not one of the hundreds interrogated later was found guilty by the Georgian justice system.
Triumphant, the patriarchate declared May 17 – the day when the event took place – as the "Day of the Family" in the country. As a result, ever since 2013, the ostracised LGBTQ community has been unable to join like-minded communities from around the world in peacefully dem- onstrating against discrimination, because the church has used it to rally its own supporters in favour of "family" values.
The bill was stopped at the last minute by President Giorgi Margvelashvili, but not before intense public debate and a show of support from the church and other conservative elements in society.
Moreover, the close relations between the Russian and Georgian Orthodox Churches, even at times when their countries were at war, have prompted criticism that the Georgian church serves as a tool of Russian propaganda in the country.
"I would not overestimate the church's influence on foreign policy," Tarkhan- Mouravi argues. "The patriachate
has more sway when it comes to domestic policies, particularly those related to family law, LGBTQ rights, and education. While there are
some ties with the Russian Orthodox Church, which is a state institution in that country, and it has come to the defence of Georgia's western orienta- tion repeatedly, it is clear that the church itself does not have a clear orientation judging by its rejection
of some western values," he said.
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· Kyrgyz president tests young democracy's mettle
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