Monday, May 13, 2024

Georgia Vows To Arrest Protesters Who Seek To Block Parliament In Overnight Action

In front of an estimated 50,000 demonstrators assembled in central Tbilisi on May 11, poet Rati Amaghlobeli, one of the protest organizers, called on Georgians to come to the streets again on May 12.

May 12, 2024
By RFE/RL's Georgian Service

TBILISI -- As Georgian protesters – who numbered in the tens of thousands on May 11 – prepared for another mass rally in central Tbilisi, government officials vowed to arrest demonstrators who attempt to block the parliament building ahead of discussions on the controversial "foreign agent" bill that has been condemned by the United States, the EU, and others.

Opposition leaders have called on protesters to gather late on May 12 and spend the night on the streets ahead of parliament’s planned third reading and likely passage of what critics call the “the Russian law” – similar to legislation used by the Kremlin to silence media and civil society groups in that country.

The bill is scheduled to be heard by committee in parliament on May 13, with a full vote – and likely passage – expected on May 14.

In a press briefing on May 12, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze claimed that ruling Georgian Dream lawmakers are certain to adopt the bill and that it will "reflect the will of Georgian society."

He warned protesters that "violence will not remain unpunished," while urging police to "show maximum patience and in responding to violence and insults, to act with a high standard.”

Meanwhile, in a separate briefing on May 12, President Salome Zurabishvili, who has broken with the government and come out in support of peaceful protests, strongly criticized the government and Georgian Dream leaders for not taking into account the views of thousands of citizens on the streets.

"It's very funny when politicians pretend to be able to count with high IQs and they can't count how many people there were,” she said, adding that the government “has lost the confidence of the people."



Mass Protests Resume In Tbilisi Over 'Foreign Agent' Bill




In front of an estimated 50,000 demonstrators assembled in central Tbilisi on May 11, poet Rati Amaghlobeli, one of the protest organizers, called on Georgians to come to the streets again on May 12.

The aim is to show the world that Georgians strongly oppose the bill, which has raised concerns about its potential effect on media and civil society as well as the country's European ambitions.

"We've got to have this country united tomorrow. We need to be that and so much more tomorrow. Let the world see!" Amaghlobeli said.

Protesters were encouraged to gather around the parliament starting at 10 p.m. and stay overnight so their presence could be felt as parliament convenes early on May 13 for discussions on the bill. Organizers urged them to bring sleeping bags, tents, and board games and said that a stage will be set up for music and songs.

Under the terms of the proposed legislation, media outlets, NGOs, and other nonprofits would be required to register as "pursuing the interests of a foreign power" if more than 20 percent of their funding comes from abroad.

Critics say it is modeled after decade-old "foreign agent" legislation that Russian President Vladimir Putin has used to crush dissent and punish independent institutions, and EU officials have said the bill could be a significant setback to Tbilisi's membership bid.

Demonstrators on May 11 chanted "Yes Europe!" and "No to the Russian law" as they assembled in different areas of the capital before making their way to Europe Square, in the heart of Tbilisi's historic district.

Previous rallies have been met with a violent response by security forces, including the use of tear gas and water cannons against demonstrators, as well as arrests. Roving bands of thugs have targeted demonstrators. Protesters and journalists have also shown injuries consistent with the use of rubber bullets, despite officials' denials.

Violent Attacks Leave Opponents Of Georgian 'Foreign Agent' Bill Bloodied, Bruised, And Defiant



Reports of actions by security forces during the May 11 demonstrations were unclear, and there was no immediate confirmation of arrests.

Activist Gia Japaridze called for the release of all those detained during the weeks of protests.

"We must make our voices heard. We must demand the Russian puppet authorities release detained political prisoners," said Japaridze, a former diplomat and university professor and the brother of opposition leader Zurab Japaridze.

The United States has been one of the biggest backers of Georgia's efforts to join the European Union and other Western institutions and one of the biggest critics of the draft legislation.

U.S. national-security adviser Jake Sullivan lauded the protesters on May 11.

"The Georgian people are making their views known," Sullivan wrote on X, formerly Twitter. "Undeterred by intimidation tactics, tens of thousands of peaceful protestors turned out in rainy Tbilisi today to demand Georgian Dream withdraw the legislation."




Earlier in the day, the U.S. Embassy announced that Jim O'Brien, the U.S. assistant secretary of state for European and Eurasian affairs, will visit the Georgian capital, along with the Montenegrin capital, Podgorica, between May 14 and May 17.

The announcement came after 29 members of the U.S. House of Representatives issued an open letter to Kobakhidze expressing "grave concern" and "strongly" urging his government to withdraw the bill.

The U.S. lawmakers said in a May 10 letter that it was a "harmful bill" that would "undermine the will of the Georgian people who seek a future in the West."

The lawmakers said "in no uncertain terms" that its passage and further moves toward "Russian-style authoritarianism...would cause the United States to fundamentally reassess the nature of our relationship" with Georgia.

Also on May 10, 18 media and rights organizations, including the International Press Institute, said the proposed legislation "provides the authorities with a powerful tool to discredit, pressure, and eventually silence independent voices, thereby threatening press freedom and freedom of expression."

Kobakhidze's government insists the law is in line with EU standards and is only intended to increase "transparency" and prevent "harmful foreign influence" in the country's political scene.

The bill's backers appear to control sufficient votes for passage and possibly to override a veto that has been promised by President Salome Zurabishvili.

An earlier version of the bill was introduced by Georgian Dream allies last year but withdrawn amid public outcry.

Georgia warns protesters of arrests if they block parliament


By AFP
May 12, 2024

Sunday's protest will come a day after tens of thousands gathered in Tbilisi's Europe Square - Copyright AFP Vano SHLAMOV

Ola CICHOWLAS

Georgia’s government on Sunday issued a warning to protesters that it would arrest anyone who blocked the parliament, ahead of an expected late-evening rally against a Russian-style “foreign agent” bill.

Demonstrations have gripped the tiny Caucasus country for weeks over a bill targeting NGOs, dubbed the “Russian law” as it mirrors repressive legislation used by the Kremlin to silence critics.

Protesters are due to gather outside parliament in Tbilisi late in the evening, with many planning to stay through the night.

“Group blocking of an object of special importance is punishable by up to four years in prison,” Interior Minister Vakhtang Gomelauri said.

“We are going to use this article against lawbreakers without any exemption,” he warned.

The protest will come a day after tens of thousands gathered in Tbilisi’s Europe Square. Protesters said they planned to continue holding rallies, with the government appearing intent on passing the law in the coming days.

“I want to warn everyone from the radical groups of opposition that everyone will be held accountable to the law for violence,” Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze warned.

Authorities have presented protesters — largely made up of young people — as violent mobs.

“At the same time, I would like to ask the law enforcement officers to show maximum patience and act with a higher standard than it is in Europe,” Kobakhidze added.

Saturday’s rally was peaceful, with rock music blasting out from the stage, but night-time demonstrations have been dispersed in the past.

Powerful billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili and his ruling Georgian Dream party have said NGOs are a threat to Georgian sovereignty, accusing them of plotting a revolution and working on behalf of foreign governments.

The stand-off over the bill has created one of the most unpredictable and tense political moments in Georgia in recent years.


– EU future ‘threatened’ –


Protesters say the bill is a move to silence critical voices and is proof Georgian Dream is derailing Tbilisi’s long-held ambition of joining the European Union — supported by the vast majority of the population.

They accuse the government of bringing the ex-Soviet country back into Moscow’s fold and of lying in promising a future in the EU.

The protests, led mostly by students and younger generations, are heavy in anti-Kremlin rhetoric, with thousands carrying EU and Georgian flags.

Some also carry Ukrainian flags.

Luka Bereia, a student protest leader, said the bill “threatens us starting negotiations to join the EU.”

“We do not want to be out of this game,” the 24-year-old said.

He said he planned to stay the night outside parliament and readied for an “extraordinary night”, vowing he was not afraid of police force.

Speakers at Saturday’s protest called on supporters to gather at 10:00 pm the next day outside parliament and to bring yoga mats with them.


– ‘Stay very careful’ –



Georgia’s pro-EU President Salome Zurabishvili, at loggerheads with the government, warned protesters to be vigilant.

“I want to address you (the protesters), so that you know… There are some plans that will not really work, but there are some plans to organise provocations and involve you,” she said, without going into details.

“So stay very careful, which does not mean fear,” she added.

On April 30, authorities dispersed a protest using water cannons and tear gas.

Leading NGO activists have over recent days reported being harassed by unknown people, with some having their homes and offices plastered in posters that read “foreign agent”.

Georgian Dream has portrayed the bill as being about “transparency” — saying it is merely an administrative issue.

But the NGO sector, the opposition and protesters say the government’s true aims are about control and getting rid of critical voices.

They also say the bill is timed to prepare ground for an autumn election.

Human Rights Watch: "Foreign agents" bill threatens fundamental rights in Georgia

May 11, 2024 

The international human rights organization Human Rights Watch (HRW) has issued a statement indicating that the “Transparency of Foreign Influence” bill, which requires certain non-governmental groups and media to register as “organizations representing the interests of a foreign state,” threatens fundamental rights in Georgia. Additionally, HRW notes that this bill is similar to the Russian “foreign agents” law.

The statement emphasizes that the bill does not align with the legislative commitments Georgia has undertaken by joining the European Convention on Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

According to the organization, international law allows for certain limitations on freedom of expression and association, but this bill “goes far beyond any legitimate interference with these rights.”


“Building a database of violent individuals,”- the speaker of Georgian Parliament

HRW also believes that the parliament ‘should reject the consideration of the bill at the final hearing,’ and the government should ensure compliance with fundamental rights to freedom of assembly and expression, as well as conduct effective investigations into all allegations of excessive use of force by the police.

‘By labeling independent groups and media as serving foreign interests, they intend to marginalize and suppress critical voices in the country, which are the cornerstone of any functioning democracy,’ says Hugh Williamson, HRW’s director of the Europe & Central Asia division.

Protest against the foreign agents bill in front of the Parliament building in Tbilisi, April 30, 2024 / Photo: Giorgi Gogia / Human Rights Watch

Georgian PM vows to pass 'foreign agent' bill next week after thousands protest

May 12, 2024 
By Reuters
Demonstrators hold a rally to protest against a bill on 'foreign agents' in Tbilisi, Georgia, May 11, 2024.

TBILISI —

Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze vowed on Sunday to push ahead with a law on "foreign agents" that has sparked a political crisis, after opponents of the bill rallied in one of the largest protests seen since independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.

Kobakhidze told a televised briefing that the ruling Georgian Dream party would secure passage of the bill in a third reading this week, and threatened protesters with prosecution if they resort to violence.

Georgia's opposition has called on opponents of the bill to stage on all-night protest outside parliament to prevent lawmakers from entering the building on Monday, when they are due to begin debating the bill's third reading.

The bill requires organizations receiving more than 20% of their funding from abroad to register as agents of foreign influence or face punitive fines.

Western countries and Georgia's opposition denounce it as authoritarian and Russian-inspired. Critics liken it to Russia's 2012 "foreign agent" law, which has been used to hound critics of Vladimir Putin's Kremlin.

The dispute over the bill has come to be seen as key to whether Georgia, which has had traditionally warm relations with the West, continues its push for European Union and NATO membership, or instead builds ties with Russia.

The EU, which granted Georgia candidate status in December, has repeatedly said the bill could jeopardize Tbilisi's further integration with the bloc.

Georgian Dream's founder, billionaire ex-prime minister Bidzina Ivanishvili, said last month that the law was necessary to assert Georgian sovereignty against Western powers which he said wanted to drag the country into a confrontation with Russia.

On Saturday evening, a crowd of protesters braved driving rain to stage the largest protest yet, with several columns of marchers shutting down much of central Tbilisi.

A Reuters estimate, using the Mapchecking crowd counting tool, placed the number of protesters at around 50,000 people.

Some Georgian media and activists have put the crowd size in the hundreds of thousands, citing their own calculations. The ruling party said 18,000 attended, but did not explain its reasoning.


Georgian prime minister determined to push moot foreign agent bill through parliament

Over 80% Georgians support NGO transparency bill, while over 60% back legislation itself, says PM Irakli Kobakhidze

Davit Kachkachishvili 
 |12.05.2024 - 



TBILISI, Georgia

Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze confirmed Sunday that the parliament will vote on the contentious "transparency of foreign influence" bill despite protests.

In a news briefing in the capital Tbilisi, Kobakhidze criticized the opposition for avoiding constructive discussions on the issue and expressed their openness to dialogue with international partners.

He reiterated the government's determination to pass the bill, claiming strong support from over 80% of Georgians for NGO transparency and over 60% for the legislation itself.

The government plans to hold sessions on Monday and Tuesday to pass the bill in its third and final vote, following approval in previous rounds.

Georgia’s President Salome Zourabichvili, however, has reiterated her opposition to the bill, labeling it a "Russian law" and promising to veto it if passed.

Despite her objections, the bill has already cleared two parliamentary approvals on April 17 and May 1. The country’s ruling Georgian Dream party has the majority in parliament to overcome a veto by the president.

Georgia has seen nearly a month of protests against the draft law, which stipulates that non-governmental organizations that receive more than 20% of their funding from abroad must register as pursuing foreign interests or face fines.

*Writing by Muhammed Yasin Gungor in Istanbul

No comments:

Post a Comment