Source: Georgia: Thousands rally in protest at ‘foreign influence’ bill
Tens of thousands of Georgians have taken to the streets of the capital Tbilisi on Saturday evening to protest a controversial “foreign influence” bill backed by the government.
Protesters marched to the capital’s Europe Square holding Georgian and EU flags, chanting “no to the Russian law”.
The law would target civil society organisations and independent media that receive foreign funding.
Massive rallies have gripped the Black Sea Caucasus country for nearly a month after the ruling Georgian Dream party reintroduced the bill.
Despite a campaign of intimidation ahead of Saturday’s rally – in which dozens of NGO workers, activists and opposition politicians received threats or were physically assaulted – protesters turned up in their thousands undeterred by the pouring rain.
Opposition parties say the bill – coined “Russian law” after Russia’s passing of similar legislation in 2012 – will be used by the government to clamp down on dissent.
The US has said the bill threatens free speech.
In neighbouring Russia, the law has since been used to marginalise voices challenging the Kremlin – including prominent cultural figures, media organisations and civil society groups.
Many Georgians in the rally do not want Russia’s authoritarian-style leadership crossing into their country.
“We don’t need to return to the Soviet Union,” 38-year-old Georgian-language teacher Lela Tsiklauri, said.
周六晚上，数万名格鲁吉亚人走上首都第比利斯街头，抗议政府支持的一项有争议的“外国影响力”法案。 抗议者举着格鲁吉亚和欧盟旗帜游行到首都欧洲广场，高呼“反对俄罗斯法律”。 该法律将针对接受外国资助的民间社会组织和独立媒体。 在执政的格鲁吉亚梦想党重新提出该法案后，大规模集会在黑海高加索国家举行了近一个月。 尽管周六集会前发生了一场恐吓活动，数十名非政府组织工作人员、活动人士和反对派政客受到威胁或人身攻击，但数千名抗议者并没有被倾盆大雨吓倒走上街头。 反对党表示，该法案——在俄罗斯于 2012 年通过类似立法后造就了“俄罗斯法”——将被政府用来压制异见。 美国表示该法案威胁言论自由。 在邻国俄罗斯，该法律此后被用来边缘化挑战克里姆林宫的声音——包括著名文化人物、媒体组织和民间社会团体。 集会上的许多格鲁吉亚人不希望俄罗斯独裁式的领导层进入他们的国家。 38 岁的格鲁吉亚语教师莱拉·齐克劳里说，“我们不需要回到苏联。”
