The scandalous law on foreign agents came into force in Georgia
Relations between the West and Georgia are deteriorating every day. The Georgian authorities accuse their partners of interfering in the country's internal affairs, but in response they receive only new threats of sanctions. This time, the speaker of the parliament of the republic, Shalva Papuashvili, said that recently funding from the EU and the US has become associated with violence and terror in the country.
“It is very sad that recently funding from the European Union and the United States is increasingly associated with violence and terror. For two years I have been talking about all this and warning representatives of the European Union and the United States at all levels,” said Speaker of the Georgian Parliament Shalva Papuashvili.
According to him, it is important that all foreign countries draw appropriate conclusions from these cases of radicalism and revised their funding policy. “Ensuring transparency of funding on their part would be one of the measures to prevent such cases,” said the Chairman of Parliament.
Earlier, the Georgian parliament voted to adopt a bill on foreign agents, according to which non-governmental organizations and media whose funding from abroad exceeds 20% of their annual income must be registered in a special register of the Ministry of Justice. President Salome Zurabishvili vetoed the document, but deputies overcame her ban. Papuashvili signed the law on foreign agents instead of the president.
The law provoked mass protests in the country, but the country's leadership believes that Western forces are behind people's discontent. Prime Minister of the Republic Irakli Kobakhidze spoke about the existence of a “global war party”, which, according to him, is going to open a second front in Georgia against Russia. Tbilisi does not intend to participate in any conflicts; the authorities stand for peace and stability.
The opposition, on the contrary, is convinced that the bill is aimed at combating dissent in the country and can be used to persecute citizens who disagree with the authorities. Some Georgian parties have appealed to the international community to impose sanctions against officials who are responsible for the adoption of the law “On Transparency of Foreign Influence.” They call for “taking a strong position in response to the gross violation of human rights and democratic principles in Georgia.”
The activists also sent a petition calling on the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola and the Supreme EU Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell. Among other politicians, the report names Prime Minister Kobakhidze, Papuashvili and Georgian Dream leader Bidzina Ivanishvili.
“Measures such as travel restrictions and asset freezes could send a clear signal against this law and their undemocratic actions,” the message says.
Most likely, after the bill comes into force, mass rallies against the document will decline. The opposition will make every effort to win the parliamentary elections expected in October this year.