Yesterday Rustaveli Avenue in Tbilisi was once again filled with protesters against the scandalous bill on “foreign agents”. For the third day, large-scale actions are taking place, and the demands put forward have been supplemented with one more item – to release all those detained during the demonstrations, Interpressnews reports.
The demonstrators began the official part with the anthems of Georgia, Ukraine and the European Union. There are many students, opposition politicians, members of public organizations and activists among the protesters. There are many law enforcement officers not only on the main avenue, but also in the surrounding neighborhoods. The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia previously announced the detention of 133 people, but how many of them are still in custody is unknown. Late last night, the Ministry of Internal Affairs announced that they had been released.
After two nights of protests outside the Georgian parliament, the Georgian authorities announced that they were “withdrawing” the bill on “foreign agents”. The opposition, however, said they were going to continue the protests until Georgia takes a “guaranteed pro-Western course.”
Meanwhile, specialists and experts argue that it is procedurally impossible to simply “recall” a draft approved in the first reading – only through a deviation during the voting in the second reading. After that, the party in power promised that an appropriate procedure would be carried out in parliament.
Crowds of protesters are outraged by a controversial Russian-style law that classifies NGOs and media groups as “foreign agents” if they receive more than 20% of their funds from abroad.
On Wednesday evening, the police managed to push back the demonstrators, who literally tore down the metal barrier near the parliament building. Georgian television footage late on Wednesday showed hundreds of commandos in helmets and shields appearing on the streets. One police car was overturned. Dispersing the protesters, the police fired tear gas that filled Rustaveli Avenue and nearby streets.
On the second day of the protests, tens of thousands of people joined the action. They convened in parliament, where on Tuesday lawmakers supported the first reading of a controversial new law that has received widespread international condemnation. writes Air Force. A similar law has been used in Russia to severely restrict freedom of the press and suppress civil society. One of the students who took part in the protests says:
“We think that our government is under the influence of Russia, and this is very bad for our future.”
Another student, Liya Chagovadze, said she and her friends were there to fight for Western values and freedom, while Nanuka Shakinovi said the protesters would not allow the government to stop Georgia’s push to join the EU:
“We’re going to fight them and we won’t stop until we win.”
The protesters believe that the new law, if passed, will undermine the country’s hopes of joining the EU. Tekla Tevdorashvili, a demonstrator, says:
“People are really outraged because this is not about anything else, but about the future of Georgia, and how we will function as a country. Everyone is really against it and I think that’s why they’re so scared and that’s why the government is trying to use everything it can against the people to silence us, but we won’t.”
The United States, in a statement, expressed solidarity with the protesters and called on the Georgian government to allow peaceful demonstrations. State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters:
“We call on the Georgian government to respect the freedom of peaceful assembly and peaceful protest. We support the people of Georgia and their aspirations.”
Authorities said 55 police officers were injured on the first night of the protests when Molotov cocktails and stones were thrown at them. In response, law enforcement officers fired water cannons at protesters waving EU flags.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili condemned the “hype” around the bill, which passed the first reading in parliament. The ruling Georgian Dream party claims the law traces its origins to US legislation from the 1930s. The same argument was used by the Russian Federation after the adoption of a similar law in 2012. It has since been expanded to crack down on Western-funded NGOs, independent media, journalists and bloggers. Anyone who is identified as a foreign agent must now provide the appropriate label in their publication.
Georgia has applied to the EU for candidate status and intends to join NATO. However, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell has already warned that the bill is “inconsistent with the values and standards of the EU.” Thirty-year-old protester Luka Kimeridze says:
“Again and again they try to do everything to take us away from the European Union, European values.”
Georgian Dream chairman Irakli Kobakhidze said criticism of the bill as similar to Russia’s repressive legislation is misleading. “In the end, the hype will subside, and the public will get transparency in funding NGOs,” he said.
Political tension in Georgia, writes The Air Force, intensified by Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which many Georgians see as Moscow’s war of aggression, and many thousands of Russians have fled there. However, the government in Tbilisi has taken a neutral stance, refusing to openly support Ukraine or impose sanctions on Russia.
Speaking via video link during a visit to New York, Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili expressed her support for the protesters:
“I am on your side. Today you represent free Georgia. Georgia, which sees its future in Europe, will not allow anyone to take away this future.”
She promised to veto the law, but Georgian Dream has enough votes to override it in parliament. The party turned to the Council of Europe for an opinion.
On Thursday morning, after two nights of protests and a violent crackdown on demonstrators outside the Georgian parliament, the Georgian authorities announced that they had withdrawn the controversial “foreign agents” bill. This statement caused a positive reaction from international partners – in particular, the EU welcomed the withdrawal of the project.
But so far, the recall is known only from the words of the authorities, and experts say that this step is impossible. Georgia Online quotes constitutionalist Vakhushti Menabde:
“A law adopted in the first reading is not subject to revocation.”
The expert recalled that the authorities registered two projects, and promised to withdraw one – exactly the one with which this cannot be done. At the same time, the second draft, which provides for tougher punishment for “foreign agents”, may be withdrawn if all its initiators apply to parliament with such a request. Lawyer Lina Gvinianidze and non-governmental expert Sergi Kapanadze think the same way:
“There is no procedure for withdrawing a draft that has passed the first reading. Such a bill must be put to a vote and rejected. They retreated only in words. It is impossible to withdraw a draft adopted in the first reading.”
And the opposition MP Ani Tsitlidze, Mtvari reports, said that even if the draft is rejected by the committees and the session hall, it is possible to return to its consideration within a month.
Activists have already said that the protests will continue despite the authorities’ announcement. Late last night, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia reported that all those detained during mass protests against the law on “foreign agents” had been released. Protestants in the center of Tbilisi began to put forward political demands and, together with the resignation of the government, demand early elections, Rustavi 2 TV channel reports. Opposition politicians appeared on the podium, addressed the rally participants and stated that it was necessary to change the government.
Part of the opposition says that they will not disperse and the protests will not stop until they are convinced that the path and course to Europe is unshakable. Interpressnews reports that a rally will be held in front of the Georgian parliament building on March 10. The organizers of the action on Rustaveli Avenue urged citizens to gather again tomorrow at 11:00.
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