Tbilisi rocked by clashes over 'foreign influence' bill for third consecutive night
Tens of thousands of people took to the streets in Georgia on Thursday to protest against a "foreign influence" bill likened to Russian laws silencing dissent, an AFP journalist said.
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The Black Sea Caucasus nation has been gripped by mass anti-government protests since April 9, after the ruling Georgian Dream party reintroduced the bill that critics see as repressive.
Unlike previous demonstrations in the capital Tbilisi, Thursday's protests took place in two different locations: the traditional one in front of parliament, but also on Heroes Square, home to a monument dedicated to fallen Georgian soldiers.
Police fired tear gas and arrested several protesters who had blocked the main road leading to Heroes Square.
Demonstrators in front of the parliament then headed to the square, shouting "No to Russia!" and holding up placards of Georgia Dream MPs they branded as "traitors".
"We are all together to show the Kremlin's puppets that we will not accept the government that goes against the Georgian people's wishes," said protester Giorgi Loladze, 27, from Kutaisi, Georgia's third-largest city.
Read moreWhat is Georgia's controversial 'Russian law'?
The bill, which cleared its second reading in parliament on Wednesday, has come under fire from the European Union, United Nations and United States.
UN rights chief Volker Turk on Thursday called on Georgia's government to withdraw the bill and expressed concern at police violence against protesters.
The US said it was "deeply concerned" by the bill while EU chief Ursula von der Leyen on Wednesday expressed "great concern" over the situation in Georgia.
Police on Tuesday violently broke up a demonstration against the bill, firing tear gas, water cannon and rubber bullets, and beating and arresting scores of people.
#Georgia: @volker_turk concerned by reports of unnecessary & disproportionate use of force against demonstrators.
— UN Human Rights (@UNHumanRights) May 2, 2024
Authorities urged to withdraw bill labelling NGOs and media outlets receiving foreign funding as “organisations acting in the interest of a foreign power”
If adopted, the law would require that any independent NGO and media organisation receiving more than 20 percent of its funding from abroad register as an "organisation pursuing the interests of a foreign power".
Last year, mass street protests forced Georgian Dream to drop plans for similar measures.
The ruling party has defended the bill, saying it aims at increasing transparency of NGO funding.
(AFP)
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