Georgia Withdraws Bill From Parliament Over Protests

Georgia’s governing party announced it is withdrawing a draft law from parliament after days of protests.

The Georgian Dream party said on Thursday it would unconditionally withdraw the bill without any reservations.

It cited the need to reduce confrontation in society.

The bill would have required Georgian organisations receiving more than 20 per cent of their funding from abroad to register as “foreign agents” or face fines.

Opponents of the bill, including Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili, who said she would veto it if it crossed her desk, have compared it with a 2012 Russian law, which has been used to clamp down on dissent.

The bill had also angered supporters of Georgian membership in the European Union after EU officials condemned the draft law, and said it would complicate Georgia’s path to joining the bloc.

Last year, the EU declined to grant Georgia candidate status alongside Moldova and Ukraine.