The ruling party announced the withdrawal of the controversial text, while promising public consultations to “better explain” its objectives.
After 48 hours of mobilization, he finally backed down. Georgia’s ruling party, Georgian Dream, announced Thursday, March 9, the withdrawal of a widely denounced bill that targeted the media and NGOs. The text had triggered massive demonstrations on Tuesday and Wednesday, harshly repressed in this former Soviet republic of the Caucasus.
“As a party of government responsible to every member of society, we have decided to unconditionally withdraw this bill that we support”, the party said in a statement posted on its website. Georgian Dream believes the bill was “deceptively misrepresented”and promises to launch public consultations to “explain better” the purpose of this text. The door is therefore not completely closed for a future return of this bill to Parliament.
On Wednesday evening, the Georgian police dispersed with tear gas and water cannons several tens of thousands of demonstrators denouncing this bill, which they considered inspired by Russia. Franceinfo returns in four questions to this very controversial law and the movement which has led, at this stage, to its withdrawal.
1 What did this bill provide?
As the organization Human Rights Watch* explains, on February 14, several members of the parliamentary majority tabled a bill on “transparency of foreign influence”. This, supported by Rêve géorgien, required Georgian media and NGOs receiving 20% or more of their annual income from a “foreign power”, to declare themselves as “foreign influence agents” to the Ministry of Justice. A “foreign power” was defined by the text as foreign individuals, associations, companies or even foreign government agencies, specifies Human Rights Watch. According to the proposal, the NGOs and media concerned had to provide all the information on this funding, and risked a fine of up to 9,000 euros in the event of an incomplete financial declaration.
On February 22, the elected officials behind this proposal tabled an updated version of the text, including and targeting individuals as possible “agents of foreign influence”. : it could be, according to the bill, people with political activities or working as a public relations consultant. The new version of the text also mentioned penalties of up to five years in prison for offenders.
2 What were his opponents denouncing?
Opponents noted that the proposal was inspired by a Russian law, which cracks down on media and critical voices in the country. “Those who continued to operate became victims of increasing control, harassment and repression. Russian law is not Georgia’s choice,” said in a joint statement (in Georgian) some 400 Georgian NGOs and media. The project, according to them, would be “an attack on the key Georgian values of dignity, independence and solidarity”, while harming “seriously to the country’s integration into Europe”. Georgia aspires to join the European Union and NATO, and formally applied to join the EU, along with Ukraine and Moldova, shortly after the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
For Hugh Williamson, director for Europe and Central Asia at Human Rights Watch, this bill was aimed “clearly to restrict crucial groups and media, violates Georgia’s international obligations and would have a serious chilling effect on groups and individuals working to protect human rights, democracy and the rule of law.” in the country. In a sign of growing concern in the West, the head of European Union diplomacy, Josep Borrell, on Wednesday condemned the bill, deeming it “incompatible” with the values of the EU and the Georgian goal of joining the European bloc.
3 How did the mobilization take place?
The adoption on Tuesday of this bill on “agents of foreign influence”, in first reading, provoked the rally the same evening of several thousand opponents in Tbilisi. During the largely peaceful protest, at least one protester threw a Molotov cocktail at a cordon of riot police, according to state broadcaster Pireli TV. The demonstrators were then dispersed with tear gas and water cannons. According to the authorities, the security forces arrested at least 77 people, and “nearly 50 police officers” as well as civilians were injured. The opposition party Girchi announced that its leader, Zurab Japaridze, had been violently beaten by police officers and taken into custody. The president of Georgian Dream, Irakli Kobakhidze, for his part denounced the action of “radicals”.
The opposition subsequently called for a new mobilization on Wednesday. “From 3 p.m. Georgians will gather on Rustaveli Avenue [à Tbilissi] and this will continue every day. The avenue will be Georgian and not Russian, until victory”, had launched Tuesday evening Nika Melia, figure of the United National Movement, an opposition formation created by the former imprisoned president Mikheïl Saakashvili. These demonstrations on Wednesday brought together tens of thousands of people. “No to Russian law!”chanted the crowd, waving flags of Georgia and the European Union. The police ordered the demonstrators gathered in front of the Parliament to disperse, then used gas and water cannons, according to an AFP journalist present on the spot.
4 What is the current political situation in Georgia?
The Georgian presidency and the government are clearly divided on the bill. President Salome Zurabishvili called for the law to be “repealed”, promising to veto it (although this can be overcome by the ruling party and its majority in parliament). The leader also said “alongside” Some protestors. “Today you represent free Georgia which sees its future in Europe, and which will not let anyone steal this future from it”, she said. “It is a threat to our European future.”she repeated on France 24.
Recent measures taken by the government, however, have undermined these European aspirations, and raised doubts about the links between the ruling party and the Kremlin. Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili claimed that his policy towards Moscow was “balanced” and aimed to ensure “peace and stability”. According to Human Rights Watch, members of the ruling party have recently been “increasingly critical of civil society organizations and media supporting the opposition in the country”.
The EU, which had granted candidate status to Ukraine and Moldova, demanded that Georgia carry out several reforms before obtaining a similar status. “After missing candidate status in 2022, the ruling party did everything to ‘persuade’ the European partners that it did not deserve this status”, denounces Sergi Kapanadze, from the think tank Grass, quoted by the Stockholm center for studies on Eastern Europe*. The latter mentions in particular “the arrest of journalist Nika Gvaramia, mistreatment of former President Mikheil Saakashvili” or even a “increased polarization”. Another researcher quoted by the Swedish institute, Shota Gvineria, evokes for his part “the openly pro-Russian position of the Georgian authorities which manifested itself after the Russian invasion of Ukraine”.
*These links refer to content in English.