Ruling party will not revert to bill on transparency of foreign influence - PM
The bill was then withdrawn by Georgian Dream following the rallies, with the party citing “importance of peace” in the country, and was rejected in a formal move at the legislative body in early April. Photo: Government Administration
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Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili on Wednesday said he had “clearly confirmed” to country’s European and American “friends” that the ruling Georgian Dream party would not revert to the domestic bill on transparency of foreign influence, which it retracted from the Parliament voting following domestic and international backlash in March.
Proposed by People's Power, a public movement established by former MPs of the party, the legislation involved registration of non-commercial legal entities and media outlets in the country as “agents of foreign influence” if they derive more than 20 percent of their funding from abroad.
“Our European and American friends were wondering about this question. I clearly confirmed, on behalf of our team, our position that Georgian Dream is not going to return to the bill on ‘agents of foreign influence’. This issue is closed, and we will not return to this issue”, Garibashvili said in response to a question from a journalist at the Georgia Cybersecurity Forum.
The bill was met by a backlash from the domestic opposition, civil sector and diplomatic representations in the country, who claimed threats to democratic principles from the bill’s potential adoption.
People's Power said the bill had become a “target of unjustified criticism”, and said comparisons drawn with a law in Russia were “categorically unacceptable”. The movement said “unlike the American and Russian laws” the bill was “fully compatible with legal standards, including in terms of human rights”.
A public protest launched against the legislative piece in early March outside the Parliament of Georgia in capital Tbilisi saw 58 law enforcement officers receive “various injuries” in clashes with demonstrators.
The domestic reaction took place as the Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili requested the opinion of the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe on the controversial bill the same month.
The bill passed the first hearing at the Georgian Parliament, where 76 MPs out of registered 113 members supported it at a plenary session of the lawmaking body. The heated sessions between MPs were held while authorities said they would await the Commission’s opinion before scheduling the second hearing at the lawmaking body.
The bill was then withdrawn by Georgian Dream following the rallies, with the party citing “importance of peace” in the country, and was rejected in a formal move at the legislative body in early April.
The Georgian Interior Ministry on Friday said 58 law enforcement officers had received “various injuries” while ensuring safety during the rallies in central Tbilisi on Tuesday and Wednesday that protested the Parliament’s discussion of the controversial bill on transparency of foreign influence.
Georgian Parliament on Friday formally retracted the draft law on transparency of foreign influence, following the decision by the ruling Georgian Dream party to withdraw the bill.
Georgian police arrested 133 individuals during protests outside the Parliament in central Tbilisi on Tuesday and Wednesday against the controversial domestic bill on transparency of foreign influence, the Ministry of Internal Affairs announced on Thursday.
Giorgi Vashadze, the leader of the Strategy Agmashenebeli opposition party, on Wednesday called on the participants of the rally to besiege the Parliament building.
The first hearing of the draft law on Registration of Foreign Agents, scheduled for tomorrow, will no longer be discussed at the plenary session of the Parliament, the local news agency Interpressnews said on Wednesday.
Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Wednesday published the letter sent by the official to Bazy Malaurie, the President of the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe, for requesting the body’s opinion on the controversial bill on transparency of foreign influence that has met by a backlash in Georgia.
The Georgian Parliament on Tuesday approved the transparency bill at the first hearing that involves registration of non-commercial legal entities and media outlets in the country as “agents of foreign influence” if they derive more than 20 percent of their income from abroad, local media said.
A public protest was launched on Monday outside the Parliament of Georgia in capital Tbilisi in a demonstration against the proposed bill on registration of non-commercial legal entities and media outlets in the country as “agents of foreign influence” if they derive more than 20 percent of their income from abroad.
Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Wednesday discussed the bill on transparency of foreign influence with Paweł Herczyński, the Ambassador of the European Union to Georgia and ambassadors of the EU member states, the Parliament press office said.
Georgian Interior Minister Vakhtang Gomelauri on Friday said March protests in Tbilisi against the Bill on Transparency of Foreign Influence had “turned into violence” despite “numerous calls” from his office to protesters to act peacefully.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili on Wednesday said his Government would not allow violence “against any of our citizens, including minorities”, but added “we will also not allow propaganda and violence against a majority”.