Laws directly inspired by Russia to muzzle “foreign agents”.

To understand how the Georgian government’s draft law on “foreign agents” led to a huge wave of protest that still hasn’t subsided, we need to go back a few years to Russia.

In 2012, the Duma passed a law targeting so-called “foreign agents”. What does it involve? It stipulates that any individual or organization that receives funding from outside Russia must register as a “foreign agent”. Gradually, this law was “enriched”, becoming even more repressive. In 2022, it was no longer just financing that was targeted. The new law stated that it was enough to be suspected of “influence or pressure” from an outside country to be labelled an “agent” … Through the controls and pressures, it exerts, this law stigmatizes and discredits NGOs, the media and civil society as a whole. The aim is clearly to restrict public freedoms, prevent the expression of opinions unfavorable to Russian power and silence Vladimir Putin’s opponents. The European Court of Human Rights stated, after noting numerous violations of fundamental principles concerning freedom of expression and association: “Russian legislation on foreign agents is arbitrary and gives rise to a climate of mistrust” (decree of 22.10 2024).

In March 2023, the “Georgian Dream”, under the impetus of the country’s underhand ruler, oligarch Bidzina Ivanishvili, introduced a bill whose Russian inspiration is unmistakable. Organizations would be declared “foreign agents” as soon as their budget depended more than 20% on funding from foreign countries. The bill passed its first reading in Parliament. Immediately, demonstrations broke out to protest against a law clearly inspired by the Kremlin. After a few days, the government gave in. The bill was withdrawn. But the battle was not yet won….

On April 3, 2024, the “Georgian Dream” reintroduced its law on foreign agents. Numerous demonstrations broke out once again. Protests erupt in Brussels and Washington. The law was considered to run counter to the democratic principles advocated by Europe, Georgia being an official candidate for membership of the European Union…The government ignored it. The text was passed by Parliament on May 14, 2024, overriding President Salome Zourabichvili’s veto. Liberticide; anti-democratic, the “Russian law” is one of the most obvious manifestations of the alignment of Georgian power with Russia. It immediately led to the suspension of 30 million Euros in financial aid to the Georgian Ministry of Defense. And, above all, the freezing of Georgia’s EU accession process…

The adoption of this law marks a turning point in Georgia’s political trajectory, jeopardizing the process of accession to the European Union and demonstrating, in broad daylight, the authoritarian drift of power. As soon as it was promulgated, some 200 NGOs declared their unwillingness to comply with the law, and the Georgian branch of Transparency International said it expected its assets to be frozen and its work seriously threatened…

Council of Europe human rights advisor Michael O’Flaherty, following a visit to Georgia (January 2025), said of the law: “the mere existence of an unproven automatic presumption represents an unnecessary and disproportionate restriction on the right to freedom of association”.

The repression is further accentuated by the recent amendment of the Penal Code, which is supplemented by an article on “high treason”. A series of “broadly” defined offences will be considered as “high treason” (espionage, conspiracy, assisting a foreign state, etc.). This amendment, adopted by Parliament in April 2025, further strengthens the power of the Georgian authorities to control civil society players.

What they said about the “Russian law”

“This law is a direct provocation, a Russian destabilization ploy”

Salome Zurabishvili, President of Georgia

“It’s very worrying, there will be negative consequences for Georgia.”

Josep Borrell, EU Head of Diplomacy

“This is a threat to civil society organizations and undermines Georgia’s commitment to Euro-Atlantic integration.”

Matthew Miller, US State Department spokesman

“Georgia’s accession process is at a standstill for now”

Pawel Herczynski , EU Ambassador to Georgia

To remember

• March 3, 2023 , adoption, on first reading, of the law on “Foreign Agents”

• March 7-8: following huge demonstrations against this law, the Georgian Dream

  backtracked and withdrew it.

• April 3, 2024, to everyone’s surprise, the government, despite its previous

  declarations, reintroduces the same law. New demonstrations in Tbilisi and several

  other cities. Numerous clashes

• May 28, 2024, Parliament overrules the law and definitively adopts it.