Speaker: Georgian Parliament to override president's veto on "foreign agents" law

Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili announced that the Georgian parliament is poised to override the president's veto on the "foreign agents" law, Caliber.Az echoes reports of Georgian media.

Papuashvili criticized President Salome Zourabichvili, accusing her of disregarding the country's interests and the will of its people.

Papuashvili expressed confidence that the majority of MPs have sufficient votes to override the veto. If the president refuses to sign the law again, it will be signed by Papuashvili, after which it will come into force.

Since April 15, rallies have been held in Tbilisi demanding the withdrawal of the law "on foreign agents", just as it already happened in 2023. However, on May 14 the parliament passed the law in the third and final reading.

Georgian authorities believe that the adoption of the transparency law is a crucial prerequisite for achieving depolarisation, which is the main recommendation of the European Union.

The US, Israel and Australia already have laws on transparency of foreign funding, while the EU and France are considering such bills. Meanwhile, the European Union and some countries of the EU, the US, the UN, NATO and the Council of Europe have urged Georgia to refuse to adopt this bill.

The draft law "On Transparency of Foreign Influence" envisages the registration of non-governmental organisations and mass media in the register of organisations pursuing the interests of foreign power if 20% of their annual income is foreign funding. Once a year they have to fill in a declaration.

The authorities justified the reintroduction of the bill, previously withdrawn amidst mass protests in March 2023, citing concerns over escalating secret funding by foreign donors to radical groups and political parties in Georgia, despite pledges of transparency.