Georgian policemen block a street during a rally against a draft bill on 'foreign agents', in Tbilisi, Georgia, on Monday. Photograph: David Mdzinarishvili/EPAGeorgia has been rocked for weeks by demonstrations against a bill that would force non-governmental groups and media to register as “organisations serving the interest of a foreign power” if more than 20 per cent of their funding comes from overseas.
Protesters, largely young people, say it will sabotage the Caucasus country’s hopes of joining the EU and stifle civil society. It has been described as “the Russian law” by critics as it resembles repressive legislation used by the Kremlin. The ruling Georgian Dream party’s founder, Bidzina Ivanishvili, has defended the bill and lashed out at the West. In a recent speech heavy with conspiracy theories, the billionaire hit out at a “global party of war” and suggested the country’s pro-western opposition was controlled by foreign intelligence services.
Salome Zourabichvili, the president of Georgia – whose role is primarily ceremonial – criticised what she said was a “totally unwarranted, unprovoked and out-of-proportion use of force ongoing in Tbilisi against peaceful protesters”. David McAllister, the chair of the European Parliament’s foreign affairs committee, said the “brutal crackdown” underlined “the very concerning direction the Georgian government has taken with regard to democratic freedoms”. “This law has the potential to seriously derail Georgia’s path towards EU membership,” he said.
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