The ruling Georgian Dream announced a "general gathering" of its supporters against the background of ongoing protests against the Russian Law on April 29, near the Georgian Parliament building.
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The ruling party's statement asserts that the people gathering on Rustaveli Avenue daily to protest the Russian law have been misled by the "radical opposition."
"The politically bankrupt radical opposition, the wealthy NGOs, and the so-called president speak to us in the name of the people, which causes the rightful irritation of our supporters, the absolute majority of the population of Georgia.
We take into account the request of our supporters, and next Monday, April 29, we will hold a public meeting in front of the Parliament of Georgia.
I call on you, the patriotic fellow citizens of our country from all over the country, to reject the financing of the revolution in Georgia with black money, the attack on the Orthodox Church, political intervention with religious content, LGBT propaganda, drug propaganda, discrediting of state institutions, radicalism, and so-called polarization.
We cannot allow a politically and morally bankrupt political minority to speculate and speak on behalf of the people. We will show everyone where the great majority of the Georgian people stand, for whom the truth and true European values are dear, for whom our traditional national values - estate, language, and faith are dear. Let's say no to black money together and say yes to transparency, the true European path, independent and sovereign Georgia," the statement of the ruling party says.
On April 17, Georgian Dream adopted the bill restricting independent media and civil society with 83 votes in the first reading. On the same day, the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, and the Commissioner for Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement, Oliver Varhelyi, issued a statement saying that the final adoption of the law will negatively affect Georgia's progress on the EU path. The law does not comply with the basic norms and values of the European Union, they say.
European Council President Charles Michel also responded to the Russian law initiated by Georgian Dream. He said that the Georgian people chose the European path and, in response, Georgia received the candidate status. The draft law on "transparency of foreign influence" does not correspond to the European aspirations of the country; it distances Georgia from the European Union.
The Russian law contradicts the 1st and 9th recommendations defined by the European Commission for Georgia, according to which, in order to open accession negotiations, the authorities must ensure the free functioning of civil society in the country and fight disinformation against the European Union and its values.
A similar bill was supported by the ruling party in the first reading in March of last year, but people's protests forced it to be rejected. The party leaders promised to introduce the bill "unconditionally, without any reservations," but a year later, in early April, it was reintroduced. The text of the draft law remained the same - only "agent of foreign influence" was replaced by the term "organization carrying out the interests of a foreign power."
Georgian Dream intends to adopt the Russian law before the end of the current spring session of the Parliament. President Salome Zourabichvili also opposes the law, saying that she will use her right to veto.
