The Georgian parliament on Tuesday overrode a presidential veto of “foreign agents” legislation that has fueled Western concerns and sparked mass protests for weeks against the law described as “Russian law.”
The legislature, controlled by the ruling Georgian Dream party, overruled President Salome Zourabichvili’s veto of legislation that she and other critics say will restrict press freedom and obstruct Georgia’s chances of joining the European Union.
The president now has five days to approve the bill. If he does not do it, the speaker of parliament will promulgate it and make it law.
The bill passed by parliament earlier this month would require media outlets and non-governmental organizations that receive more than 20 percent of their funding from abroad to register as “pursuing the interests of a foreign power.”
Protester with a sign saying “NO TO THE RUSSIAN LAW” protests in front of the Georgian Parliament building
The Georgian parliament on Tuesday overrode a presidential veto of “foreign agents” legislation that has fueled Western concerns and sparked mass protests for weeks.
Demonstrators protesting against the “foreign influence” law gather in front of the parliament building in central Tbilisi on May 28, 2024.
Demonstrators take part in a procession to protest against a “foreign agents” bill and to support Georgia’s membership in the European Union.
Demonstrators organizing a protest clash with police officers as they attempt to breach the security perimeter of the Georgian Parliament building.
Zourabichvili, increasingly at odds with the ruling party, vetoed the bill on May 18.
He has accused the ruling party of endangering the country’s future and “standing in the way of becoming a full member of the free and democratic world.”
Lawmakers voted 84-4 to override Zourabichvili’s veto and pass the bill in a contentious parliamentary session, but most opposition MPs left the chamber before the vote.
A Georgian Dream MP also sprayed the leader of an opposition party with water while speaking from the rostrum.
The government says the bill is necessary to curb what it sees as harmful foreign actors trying to destabilize the South Caucasus nation of 3.7 million people, but many Georgian journalists and activists argue that the bill’s true goal law is to stigmatize them and restrict debate before parliamentary sessions. elections scheduled for October.
Opponents denounce the legislation as “Russian law” because it resembles measures pushed by the Kremlin to crack down on independent media, nonprofit organizations and activists.
Critics say the move may have been pushed by Moscow to thwart Georgia’s chances for greater integration with the West.
The bill has been widely criticized by the European Union, the United Nations, NATO and the United States, and Washington announced travel sanctions over the measure.
Last week, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced that travel sanctions would be imposed on Georgian officials “who are responsible or complicit in undermining democracy in Georgia.”
He noted that “it remains our hope that Georgia’s leaders will reconsider the bill and take steps to advance their nation’s democratic and Euro-Atlantic aspirations.”
The bill is almost identical to one that the ruling party was pressured to withdraw last year after massive street protests.
Fresh demonstrations again gripped Georgia as the bill moved through parliament, and protesters were seen fighting with police, who used tear gas and water cannon to disperse them.
Earlier this month, violence broke out both inside and outside parliament when footage captured the moment protesters attempted to break through barriers outside the government building as hundreds of police stormed out and roughly dragged people wrapped in Georgian flags away from the buildings. barriers.
The European Union’s foreign policy arm has said the adoption of the law “negatively impacts Georgia’s progress on the path to the EU.”
The EU offered Georgia candidate status last December, while making clear that Tbilisi needs to implement key policy recommendations for its membership bid to move forward.
The opposition United National Movement has described the bill as part of Georgian Dream’s efforts to drag the country into Russia’s sphere of influence, a claim it vehemently denies.
Georgian Dream was founded by Bidzina Ivanishvili, a former prime minister and billionaire who made his fortune in Russia.
Zuka Elbakidze, a student who was among protesters who demonstrated in Tbilisi before Tuesday’s vote, said that “this day will determine the fate of our country,” adding that “we are choosing between Europe and Russia, and all the People gathered here, except the police, want Europe and the West.
Georgian law enforcement officers are seen deployed on the streets as protesters demonstrate against the controversial “foreign influence” bill in Tbilisi on May 14, 2024.
Protests after the Georgian Parliament passed a bill on “transparency of foreign influence” continued in Tbilisi, Georgia, on May 24, 2024.
Relations between Russia and Georgia have often been difficult since Georgia became independent following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.
“We are physically witnessing, literally, how Georgian citizens, how members of the Georgian Parliament are selling out our country,” said another protester, Mariam Geguchadze.
Relations between Russia and Georgia have often been difficult since Georgia became independent following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.
In 2008, Russia fought a brief war with Georgia, which had made an unsuccessful attempt to regain control of the breakaway province of South Ossetia.
Moscow then recognized South Ossetia and another breakaway province, Abkhazia, as independent states and reinforced its military presence there.
Most of the world considers both regions to be part of Georgia.
Tbilisi cut diplomatic relations with Moscow, and the status of the regions remains a source of irritation even as relations between Russia and Georgia have improved in recent years.