Thousands of people in Sakartvele again protested against the “foreign agents” bill

Last week, in a vote boycotted by the opposition, MPs from the ruling Sakartwell Dream party voted by 83 votes – unanimously – to pass the much-criticised bill at first reading.

The bill has yet to pass the second and third readings and receive the President’s signature.

It is highly likely that the president will veto this law, but “Sakartwell’s Dream” has a strong majority in parliament. As a result, she is likely to easily pass the law through the next stages and override the president’s veto even without opposition support.

A year ago, the party was forced to abandon a similar measure after mass street protests in which police used tear gas and water cannons against demonstrators.

On Sunday evening, about 10 thousand protestors gathered in Tbilisi’s central Republic Square, waving Sakartveli and European Union flags and promising to organize a “European march” along the capital’s main street towards the parliament.

The demonstration was initiated by about 100 human rights groups and opposition parties in Sakartvel, which have so far not participated in the daily youth-dominated protests.

“The authorities, by resubmitting the Russian bill, go beyond the constitutional framework and change the orientation of the country, betraying the unbreakable will of the people,” according to a statement released by one of the organizations.

Sakartvel is currently seeking EU and NATO membership.

Sakartvelo’s dream claims to be a pro-European party and that the proposed law on “foreign agents” is only aimed at “increasing the transparency of foreign funding of non-governmental organizations”.

A similar law is in place in Russia to punish government critics and stifle independent media.

“This law and this government are incompatible with Sakartveli’s historic choice to become a member of the EU,” Nika Gvaramia, leader of the opposition Akhali party, told AFP.

The Chairman of the European Council, Charles Michelis (Šarlis Mišelis) states that “The draft of the law on the transparency of foreign influence does not correspond to Sakartvel’s aspirations in the EU and the trajectory of its accession to the EU”.

In December, Brussels granted Sakartveli official candidate status, but said Tbilisi would have to reform its judicial and electoral systems, reduce political polarization, improve press freedom and limit the power of oligarchs before formal membership talks could begin.