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https://www.theguardian.com/world/article/2024/may/28/georgian-parliament-overrides-presidents-veto-on-foreign-influence-law>
"Georgia’s parliament has voted to override a presidential veto on the
controversial “foreign influence” law, a move that is poised to derail the EU
aspirations of many Georgians in favour of closer ties with Moscow.
The divisive bill, which requires civil society organisations and media that
receive more than 20% of their revenues from abroad to register as
“organisations serving the interests of a foreign power”, was approved by the
parliament earlier this month.
The president, Salome Zourabichvili, later vetoed the law, which she and other
critics argue is modelled on a 2012 Russian bill used to suppress pro-western
groups.
But on Tuesday the Georgian parliament, controlled by the ruling Georgian Dream
party, voted to overrule her veto, setting the stage for the speaker to sign
the bill into law in the coming days.
Thousands of opponents of the bill rallied outside the parliament building on
Tuesday evening, waving Georgian and EU flags.
Zourabichvili addressed the crowd by video link, asking: “Do we want a European
future or Russian slavery?”
She called on the protesters to mobilise in the run-up to elections in October,
saying: “You are angry today, aren’t you? Get angry, but let’s get to work. The
work is that we have to prepare, first of all, for a true referendum.”
The EU has said that the law will be an obstacle to the country’s accession to
the bloc, a goal supported by up to 80% of the electorate. In a statement on
Tuesday evening the EU said it “deeply regrets” the vote to override the veto
and was considering all its options.
“The EU has stressed repeatedly that the law adopted by the Georgian parliament
goes against EU core principles and values,” it said."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
