Georgian Protests Against ‘Foreign Agents’ Law Draw Thousands in Tbilisi

In the Georgian capital Tbilisi, thousands of people demonstrated against the controversial ‘foreign agents’ law, which passed the first reading by the parliament yesterday. was hired. Of the 150 parliamentarians, 83 voted for the law. There have also been demonstrations in recent days.

The demonstrators had gathered in front of a main road near the parliament building in Tbilisi. “No to Russian law!” chants followed the playing of the Georgian national anthem and then the European anthem, according to the AFP news agency. People had Georgian and European flags.

The police used tear gas, among other things, to stop the protest. People are also said to have been arrested, but it is not clear how many. According to the AP news agency, there were protests against the law in several other Georgian locations.

The demonstrators want the law to be scrapped. They fear the law will force Georgia to focus more on Russia and less on the European Union. Russia also uses the ‘foreign agent law’ to suppress critical journalists and human rights groups, among other things.

Human Rights Watch was previously known as the authority of Georgian law and against international law.

According to the law, organizations that receive more than 20 percent of their money from abroad must register as a ‘foreign agent’. Many projects to strengthen democracy in Georgia are funded by Western funds.

The law now has to go through parliament two more times. President Zurabishvili of Georgia strongly opposes the law and has announced she will veto it, but a parliamentary majority has the power to overturn that veto.

The bill came to be last year withdrawn by the ruling Georgian Dream party after strong protests, although the party was already taking action at the time. However, the bill was recently reintroduced.

Georgia was granted candidate status as a member of the European Union last December. The European Commission has reacted angrily to the bill, saying that it is a “very worrying development”. “This law is not in line with European standards and values,” the Commission said in a statement yesterday.

A spokesperson for the US State Department said it was “deeply concerned” about the bill. “Civil society, journalism and the media are the cornerstones of a democratic society.”