MOSCOW, April 19 Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Sergei Lavrov called the law on foreign agents in Georgia the softest.
«In Georgia, demonstrations have now turned (President) Salome Zurabishvili into a fighter for freedom of speech, although the law is very lenient. And in the USA itself, in France, in Poland, in many other EU countries there are laws with fines and criminal liability if you receive money and you don’t talk about it and do something wrong with this money,” Lavrov said in an interview with radio stations Sputnik, Moscow Speaks and Komsomolskaya Pravda.
On Wednesday, the Georgian parliament passed the bill on foreign agents in the first reading. According to Georgian media, a plenary meeting of parliament to consider the bill in the second reading will presumably take place on May 17. The bill “On Transparency of Foreign Influence” provides for the registration of non-profit legal entities and media whose income, in particular more than 20%, is received from abroad. According to the draft, anyone considered to be an «organization promoting the interests of foreign forces» must be registered in a government registry. At the time of registration, it will be necessary to reflect the income received, as well as fill out a declaration. In order to identify such organizations, the Ministry of Justice will be empowered to conduct research and monitor this issue at any time. Refusal to register or fill out a declaration will be punishable by a fine of 25 thousand lari (about 9.5 thousand dollars).