The bill would require organizations that receive at least 20% of their funding from abroad to register as foreign agents.
Georgia’s parliament has passed the controversial “foreign work” law after weeks of protests against the bill and warnings from Brussels that its passage could harm the country’s participation in the European Union. passed the third and final reading of the bill regarding “members”.
Despite a scuffle between members of Congress on Tuesday, lawmakers passed the bill by a vote of 84 to 30, clearing a major hurdle before it became law.
The draft has now been passed to President Salome Zurabichvili, who has indicated she intends to veto it, but her decision could be overturned by a second vote in parliament, which is controlled by the ruling party and its allies. There is a possibility that
The ruling party’s push for the bill has plunged the South Caucasus country into a prolonged political crisis and sparked mass protests.
The bill would require media and NGOs to register as “foreign power interests” if they receive 20% or more of their funding from abroad. Many see this as influenced by similar laws in Russia that have been used to crack down on the Kremlin’s political opponents.
Critics say this poses a threat to democratic freedoms and the country’s aspirations to join the European Union.
The ruling Georgian Dream party was forced to withdraw the bill last year due to mass protests. Amendments to pass the bill sparked large demonstrations.
The government says the bill is necessary to promote transparency, combat “pseudo-liberal values” promoted by foreigners and protect Georgia’s sovereignty. Critics say the ruling party is trying to pull the country away from its European ambitions and back toward Moscow.
About 1,000 protesters picketed the fortress-like Capitol building as debate began on Tuesday. There was a large police presence nearby with water cannons.
Demonstrations have been going on for weeks, peaking in the evening and drawing crowds of tens of thousands of people, making it the largest protest movement seen in Georgia since it regained independence from Moscow in 1991.
The European Union, which granted Georgia candidate status in December, has repeatedly said the bill poses a barrier to Tbilisi’s further integration into the EU.
“If we want to join the EU, we must respect the fundamental principles of the rule of law and democratic principles,” European Council President Charles Michel said on Tuesday.
Georgian Dream insists it still has ambitions to join both the EU and NATO, despite adopting harsh anti-Western rhetoric in recent months.
Opinion polls show that while Georgian public opinion strongly supports EU integration, many Georgians are hostile to Russia over Moscow’s support for the breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia.
The US, UK, Germany, Italy and France have called on Georgia to withdraw the bill.
The Kremlin denies any role in inventing the Georgia bill, but on Tuesday said the crisis was Tbilisi’s internal affairs and accused outside forces of meddling.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “We are seeing open interference from outside in Georgia’s internal affairs.”
“This is Georgia’s internal affairs and we do not want to interfere in Georgia in any way.”
