A group of students in Batumi, western Georgia took to the streets to protest the controversial foreign transparency bill, with demonstrators from Shota Rustaveli State University and the Maritime Academy leading the charge. The students are urging the Parliament of Georgia to retract the legislation, expressing concerns about its implications.The movement gained momentum as students rallied together, with approximately 600 students and 35 lecturers participating in the strike.
However, tensions arose when allegations surfaced that some students from the naval academy were being pressured by the administration not to join the protests. This led to demands for access to the academy's premises, which were eventually granted after dialogue with the dean.
Meanwhile, in Tbilisi, citizens joined the chorus of dissent, gathering near the Parliament under the banner of Let's wake up for Georgia! However, the peaceful demonstration was met with force as police began dispersing protesters in the early hours of the morning. This crackdown resulted in the arrest of 20 participants, with reports emerging of several cases of assault.
Despite the upheaval, the Parliament pressed forward with the bill, swiftly passing it in the third reading at the Legal Affairs Committee session. The legislation is now slated for discussion in the plenary session on May 14, with uncertainties looming over potential presidential vetoes and subsequent parliamentary procedures.
The European Union and the United States of America, as well as other allies, have repeatedly warned the Georgian authorities that passing the bill could impede Georgia's progress towards European integration.
The bill, passed by the Georgian Dream party on May 1 in its second reading, received 83 votes in favor and 23 against. While the substance of the bill largely remained unchanged, the title was revised to replace the term "agent" with "Organization Pursuing the Interests of a Foreign Power" for entities deriving more than 20 percent of their incomes from abroad.
