Public protest held in solidarity with protesters arrested during transparency law rallies in Tbilisi

A Solidarity rally is being held on Friday at various locations of Georgia’s capital Tbilisi to express solidarity with protesters arrested outside the Parliament during recent public rallies against the controversial domestic law on transparency of foreign influence.

The protests will express solidarity with those arrested while taking to the streets against the law that calls for 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.

The legislative piece was supported by 84 MPs in the 150-member lawmaking body last week, against the backdrop of the public protests and criticism from Georgia’s foreign partner states, with 30 voting against.

It requires groups “considered to be an organisation pursuing the interests of a foreign power” to be registered in the public registry with the status and publicise their received funding.