Parliament Speaker highlights “importance” of “standing together” ahead of rally in support of transparency bill

Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Monday highlighted the “importance” for the public to “stand together” ahead of a public rally in support of the controversial bill on transparency of foreign influence, organised by the ruling Georgian Dream party in the capital city of Tbilisi on Monday.

In his message over the rally, Papuashvili said “the Georgian nation is wise” and “knows that the truth is invincible”.

“It is a time to stand together and defend your choices, to assess your past life and struggle, express your faith in tomorrow, preserve what is dear and cherished by you, express your love and solidarity towards those with whom you are united by one word - homeland”, he said.

Not so often, although several times in the recent history of Georgia, time arrived for unity of the nation, and at each such time, Georgia proved that it has dignity, that the bridge between the past and the future was not broken, that the heart of the country continued to beat steadily”, he continued.

He also claimed citizens would be “proud of standing together today”, and further pointed out that “we will tell our children that we stood where the country's independence, its sovereignty, the Georgian state needed our presence”.

The ruling Georgian Dream party last Monday announced the rally would be held outside the Parliament in Tbilisi “to say yes to transparency”, amid ongoing protests against the reintroduced bill, which calls for the registration of non-commercial legal entities and media outlets in the country as “pursuing the interests of a foreign power” if they derive more than 20 percent of their funding from abroad.