United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, Mary Lawlor, has responded to the re-submission by the ruling Georgian Dream of the Russian law on so-called agents. She stated that during her visit to Tbilisi, she was assured that this would not happen.
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“I'm deeply concerned by the reintroduction of the foreign agents law in Georgia's parliament, despite assurances made during my visit that it wouldn't happen. I highlighted the harm of this bill in my report & will continue to closely monitor developments,” Mary Lawlor wrote on Social Network X.
Mary Lawlor was on an official visit to Georgia from October 30 to November 7, 2023, during which she met with about 50 human rights defenders, as well as representatives of the government and parliament. She also wrote in the report prepared after the visit that "the state told her" that the law on foreign agents would not be reinstated.
Georgian Dream intends to have the parliament adopt the Russian law on so-called foreign agents in all three readings by the end of the current session, which it refused to do in March 2023 due to protests and international pressure. The text of the draft law will be the same, only replacing "agent of foreign influence" with the term "organization carrying the interests of a foreign power." The executive secretary of Georgian Dream, Mamuka Mdinaradze, noted that even in the event of a bigger protest than last year, the bill will not be withdrawn.
The USA, NATO, and the European Union claim that the adoption of the law on so-called agents will damage Georgia's European integration process. Peter Stano, the press spokesperson for the EU External Action Service, reminded the authorities of the 1st and 9th recommendations of the European Commission. These recommendations state that in order to open accession negotiations, the authorities must ensure the free functioning of civil society in the country and combat disinformation against the EU and its values.
