It is considered pro-European and has described the controversial media law as a threat to democracy from the start. Now Georgia’s President Zurabishvili has vetoed it. However, it can be overruled by Parliament.
After the controversial law on “foreign influence” was passed in Georgia, head of state Salome Zurabishvili vetoed it. “Today I am vetoing (…) the law, which is essentially Russian and contradicts our constitution,” said the pro-European president in a televised statement. However, the pro-government deputies in the parliament in Tbilisi have a sufficient majority to override the president’s veto.
Critics see parallels with Russia
The Georgian parliament passed the controversial law on Tuesday. According to this, organizations and media that are at least 20 percent financed from abroad must in future register in the former Soviet republic as bodies that “pursue the interests of foreign powers”. Critics see parallels to the law against “foreign agents” in Russia, which enables the authorities there to take massive action against critical media and organizations.
Mass protests against the law have been going on for weeks
There have been mass protests over the law in Georgia for weeks. The adoption of the law also sparked international criticism. The EU, the United Nations and NATO called on the government in Tbilisi to change course. The federal government also called for the law to be withdrawn. Georgia has officially been a candidate for EU membership since December. According to observers, a European future for the Caucasus country is hardly conceivable with the new law.