Georgia on Tuesday passed a so-called foreign agent bill that has led to mass protests for days and which the European Union has warned could harm the country’s bid to join the bloc. Photo by David Mdzinarishvili/EPA-EFE
Georgia’s Parliament passed the so-called foreign agent bill on Tuesday amid intensifying protests in the capital city of Tbilisi and condemnation growing internationally.
Parliament, led by the Georgian Dream Party, voted 84-30 to pass the bill as legislators fought verbally and even physically during weeks of heated debate with one member of Parliament being assaulted. Advertisement
Thousands gathered outside of Parliament to protest the vote, like they have done nearly every night for weeks. Demonstrators spray-painted graffiti on the Parliament building while making noise with whistles and banging on pots and pans.
Protesters continued to taunt riot gear-clad police officers as they surrounded the building as Parliament members gave their final reading.
Along with fierce opposition from protesters, the European Union has also condemned the measure, warning its adoption would jeopardize Georgia’s bid to join the bloc.
The bill, which requires non-governmental organizations media outlets and other entities to register as foreign agents if they receive 20% or more of their funding from outside nations, is still not law.
Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili, an opponent of the foreign agent legislation from the start, said she will veto the bill when it reaches her desk, but the Georgian Dream Party has enough votes to override her vote. Advertisement
Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, who favors the measure, hinted at a Russian response if the bill is not passed. He told BBC News before the vote that Georgia could “easily share the fate of Ukraine” without the passage.
While Kobakhidze did not clarify what he meant, Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022 and has been engaged in an intense war with is neighbor ever since.
