On April 3, the parliamentary majority leader of the ruling Georgian Dream party, Mamuka Mdinaradze, announced the reintroduction of the draft law on foreign agents, which the GD had to withdraw last year after the on March 7-9 massive rallies against the bill. According to Mdinaradze, the content of the bill remains the same, the only change is in the title: the word “agent” has been removed and replaced with “Organization Carrying Out the Interests of a Foreign Power”.
Civil.ge has compiled the reactions to the reintroduction of the Russian Law.
Opposition
Teona Akubardia, Parliamentary faction Reforms Group: “Georgian Dream” announced the final struggle against the declared interest of Georgia in becoming a member of the European Union and [against us-Georgian citizens] to be citizens of a democratic state. The announcement about the return of the Russian law, which has now been made by one of the leaders of the Georgian Dream, takes us back to the past. In this context, the decisive phase of the struggle is [about] what kind of a state we will live in, and we will continue the unrelenting struggle for Georgian democracy and the European and Euro-Atlantic integration of Georgia”.
Ana Natsvlishvili, Lelo for Georgia: “Georgian Dream” is losing, and like any evil power, it has decided to drag the whole country into its failure. This will not work. The Russian law was introduced in the first place in order to tie this country by chains to Russia, while you, we and all reasonable citizens of this country have very clearly made and stated our choice”.
Khatia Dekanoidze, parliamentary faction Euro-optimists: “I appeal to everyone, including women, who are the majority of the population of this country, young people, all people… who stood with us last March, we must all do everything together to not allow the Georgian Dream to take our country backwards”.
Ana Tsitlidze, United National Movement: “Ivanishvili’s party and the European integration of Georgia are incompatible. Ivanishvili’s party will do even more to damage the European course of this country and it is the duty of each of us to fight, like before, to the end to prevent this Russian law from being adopted by the Parliament”.
Giorgi Vashadze, Strategy Aghmashenebeli: “A direct, clear statement was made today by the Georgian Dream that it does not want [Georgia] to join the European Union. That’s it. It’s over. Period. There is really no other explanation for this initiative”.
International Partners
Petras Auštrevičius, Member of the European Parliament :”Looks like the ruling party of Georgia is turning towards the Euro-Asian tyranny. There is no compromise between EU and the later one as democratic criteria is not for negotiation”.
More to follow…