A/HRC/45/54 governance” by inmates, allowed by some prison administrations, noting that this increased the risk of violence and ill-treatment.17 21. During the reporting period, OHCHR supported the State Inspector’s Office in developing a strategy and action plan to operationalize its investigative mandate. OHCHR conducted capacity-building activities for the investigators of the State Inspector, and provided assistance in developing draft legislative amendments to ensure the independence of the State Inspector’s Office from the Prosecutor General’s Office and to improve the effectiveness of its investigations. 22. In cooperation with the inter-agency coordinating council against torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment – a body that is led by the Ministry of Justice – OHCHR provided assistance for the development of new services on the rehabilitation and reintegration of victims of torture, and is actively involved in elaborating the new action plan for 2021–2022 to operationalize the above-mentioned services. D. Combating discrimination 23. The Public Defender stated in her submission that discrimination in Georgia often arose from stereotypes and misconceptions, and that the State was failing to take appropriate measures to overcome them. According to her, the LGBTQI+ community remained the most vulnerable group in Georgia. She noted that allegations of discrimination based on gender constituted the majority of the 155 cases of discrimination submitted to and examined by the institution in 2019.18 24. As mentioned above, the chapter on sexual orientation and gender identity was included in the National Human Rights Action Plan. From 18 to 23 June 2019, a pride week was held in Tbilisi,19 which included a conference on the situation of sexual minorities in Georgia, attended by OHCHR. On 8 July, a brief and small Pride March of Dignity was held in the outskirts of Tbilisi, due to concerns that violence may be incited by homophobic groups. According to the Government of Georgia, in the first five months of 2020 the Prosecutor General’s Office commenced criminal prosecutions against four persons for sexual orientation and gender identity-based hate crimes. 25. Despite these developments, submissions by civil society actors highlighted continued concerns about the vulnerability of LGBTQI+ persons in Georgia and about the high rate of violence they were subjected to. The Public Defender underlined that while abuses were committed by private persons, in most cases, the State did not take the measures necessary to protect individuals and redress such abuses. 26. In a joint statement issued on International Day against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia, on 17 May 2020, the United Nations and other members of the international community in Georgia welcomed the efforts undertaken by the Government, through the Inter-Agency Council for Human Rights and the Prime Minister’s Adviser on Human Rights and Gender Equality, to help the LGBTQI+ community and other vulnerable and marginalized groups during the pandemic. The statement also urged the authorities at all levels to work with resolve to create enabling conditions for LGBTQI+ persons to exercise their rights, including to express their identities without risk or fear. 20 27. In its previous reports, OHCHR highlighted the situation of Muslims in Batumi, who had no other choice than to pray in the open air due to the small-sized mosque there. It also 17 18 19 20 The management of prisons by prisoners has been identified by several human rights mechanisms as the main factor contributing to violence among prisoners; see A/HRC/42/20, para. 20. Special report of the Public Defender of Georgia on combating and preventing discrimination and the state of equality, pp. 30–31, available at https://bit.ly/3drmVOp. A/HRC/42/34, para. 22. The statement, available at https://georgia.un.org/en/46430-lgbtqi-rights-need-attention-during-covid19-crisis-and-beyond, also recalled recommendations to Georgia by the Independent Expert on protection against violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, following his visit to the country from 25 September to 5 October 2018 (see A/HRC/41/45/Add.1). 7