Georgian MPs are against condoms

Previously, journalists in Georgia liked to complain about too calm parliamentary life. And the discussions are sluggish, and the voting is obedient - what else can you expect from the constitutional majority? Now everything is different. The pathos of accusatory speeches, evil irony, bitter sarcasm, ridicule and even tears - the life of parliament is similar to the tragedies of Shakespeare. Although there are comedies.

For example, here’s the news: the parliamentary majority is trying to ban the sale of condoms. True, not everyone. It began, as it should be, with a consideration of a very serious thing - the code of administrative offenses.

The bill proposes to supplement the code with a ban on the sale of “products of a sexual nature” in schools and within a radius of 50 meters from schools and preschool institutions, and also establishes a fine for violating this norm in the amount of 50 lari (about $30). It is also proposed to introduce a fine of 100 lari (about $60) for the sale of “products of a sexual nature” to persons under 18 years of age. What exactly is included in this list is not specified in the bill.

At first the news did not cause outrage. The public decided that we were talking about the assortment of sex shops, as well as erotic magazines and films. Nobody expected much of a catch, since they tried to open a sex shop in Tbilisi only once, many years ago. They closed it a couple of months later, unable to withstand the onslaught of church representatives and religious activists. And it turned out funny with Playboy magazine - Georgia is the only country in the world where its publication (in Georgian) turned out to be commercially unprofitable.

The fun began after the law was discussed at committee hearings. The deputies immediately stumbled over the phrase “products of a sexual nature” and also did not understand the definition of “medical products intended for the prevention and treatment of sexual disorders.” “This is idiotic,” one of the deputies said bluntly.

“For some, clothing such as chokha (Georgian national costume) may be considered sexy, while for others it is a centurion costume,” the deputies openly mocked the norm.

Data from sociologists were also cited. “A ban on the sale of products of a sexual nature to persons under 18 years of age is absurd in the age of the Internet. Especially considering that, according to sociological research, 80% of teenage boys under 17 years of age have already had sex at least once,” the minority deputy urged Zurab Japaridze.

They argued about many things, even about whether the state should define moral standards for citizens at all. However, the word “condom” was not mentioned in vain until the bill reached the Judiciary Committee.

MP from the majority coalition (Georgian Dream) Levan Berdzenishvili, a former Soviet dissident and author of translations of the comedies of Aristophanes, first reassured: Viagra, as well as “fiction, magazines and general newspapers are not subject to the ban.”

But then he switched to products that in the Soviet Union were called rubber product No. 2. “The question is serious. It depends on the condom. It can have not only a protective function, but also the possibility of obtaining pleasure, if there are additional technical means for this,” Levan Berdzenishvili was ashamed as a Soviet censor.

In randomly scattered pharmacies and shops and even, horror of horrors, near schools, you can indeed find boxes with images of fruits, “antennae”, “bubbles” and other technical tricks, the mere sight of which, according to deputies, can presumably injure the delicate psyche teenagers What if they decide that sex is for pleasure?

Another deputy from the majority coalition, Koba Davitashvili, a father of five children, acted as an expert on youth education. "It's very simple - you don't need a listing for it. There are two types of condoms: one is a means of protection, and the other has the function of satisfying sexual needs. The first one will be sold, and the other will not."

The deputy from the minority (National Movement party) Pavle Kublashvili, as a more experienced parliamentarian, chose at the same meeting to avoid such clear definitions and generally entrust this slippery topic to the government. “It’s hard for me to imagine a list of products of a sexual nature and in general I think the adoption of such a norm is problematic,” he said. “Although if you look from a legal point of view, and since we considered it necessary to introduce such regulation, we should probably entrust the development of such a law, for example, to the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports".

A video with a discussion of an urgent topic in a relevant committee blew up Georgian Facebook in a matter of hours, causing hundreds of comments: “Who established control over pleasure?”, “When will sex be banned?”, “Does size matter?”, “We demand the right for the wearing, storage and distribution of condoms,” and, of course, “Stop discussing penises - get on with pensions.”

By the way, during the month of work, the parliament of the new convocation has not yet adopted a single law. I wonder if the "strawberry-scented" condoms will be the first amendment?