Law on foreign agents in Georgia: everything that is known at the moment
Foreign agents law in Georgia
The Georgian government intends to pass a so-called “foreign agents law”, according to which foreign-funded non-governmental and media organizations must be registered as “agents of foreign influence”.
The bill is being criticized by everyone except the ruling party — the NGO and media sector, the opposition, experts, politicians who were in power until recently, and even the President of Georgia.
The bill is also sharply criticized by Georgia’s western partners from various international organizations, American senators and European deputies. The American ambassador, Kelly Degnan, bluntly called it “Russian law.”
JAMnews sets out to answer basic questions about this controversy — what it’s allegedly based on, whether it can be stopped, and what might happen if it isn’t.
Context
As of February 27, two bills have been registered in parliament — one on February 14 similar to a Russian law, which was criticized so heavily another was submitted which, according to its authors, is similar to the American law or Foreign Agents Registration Act.
Whose idea was it: The authors of both laws are the People’s Power movement, formed by deputies who formally separated from Georgian Dream. “People’s Power” makes anti-Western statements and its members directly admit that this movement was created in order to “tell people the truth about the West, which is trying to drag Georgia into the war.”
This social movement has existed for about six months, during which time they published twelve public letters and held dozens of press conferences. All their activities have been devoted to criticizing the West.
In short, it can be said the movement is anti-Western by nature.
When the bill was initiated: The bill comes as Georgia is attempting to fulfill the twelve recommendations of the EU toward EU candidacy status. The bill directly contradicts recommendations 7 and 10.
Recommendation 7 deals with the media and calls on the country to undertake stronger reforms to ensure a free, professional, pluralistic and independent media environment.
Recommendation 10 has to do with public organizations: the country should ensure public participation at all levels of the decision-making process.
The law on foreign agents, if adopted in Georgia, will primarily restrict the activities of the media and public organizations.
Parliamentary elections will be held in 2024. Georgian Dream will, of course, try to stay in power for a fourth term, and are uncomfortable with criticism they have gotten from media and NGOs.
Members of the ruling party initially said they had no knowledge of the bill, but in later statements, they admitted instead that they were involved in its creation.
What is written in the bills?
The first bill has already been published. It has seven pages and eleven articles. These articles describe exactly who is an “agent of foreign influence”, who is considered a foreign agent, where agents of foreign influence must register, who will monitor them, what happens if the person or organization concerned refuses to register, etc.
According to the bill, all media and NGOs that receive more than 20% of their non-profit income from abroad must be registered as agents of foreign influence.
Official bodies of a foreign state (or their members), as well as foreign citizens and organizations, are considered a “foreign agent”.
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A special register will be created in the Ministry of Justice. All organizations that meet these criteria will be required to register as “agents of foreign influence” in January of each year. For example, if, according to estimates in December 2022, it turns out that your organization received more than a fifth of its income from foreign countries, then in 2023, as soon as the law is passed, you will have to register.
This register does not include the state, its AIPs, SSPs (for example — kindergartens, cleaning services, sports and music schools, etc.), which also receive foreign funding. The Georgian Dream government has received several billion grants from abroad.
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Registration requires a lot of personal data: address, website of the organization, identification data, information about the income received and the amount spent in the previous year. It is very similar to a financial statement.
Registration is free.
All information requested during registration will be published.
A single registration is not enough. An organization, if it meets the criteria, must register every year. Every December, they must revise the data and resubmit the declaration to the registry in January of the following year.
If an organization no longer meets the criteria, it must apply again in writing to be removed from the register.
Information cannot be hidden as the bill provides for the creation of a monitoring service. This service will have the right to check the information of any organization or individual twice a year.
There are penalties for breaking the law. If, for example, an organization fails to register or file a financial declaration, it will be fined 25,000 lari [about $9,500]. For failure to eliminate any violation, a fine of 10,000 lari [about $3,800] is levied.
It is said that the updated version of the law is even worse than the first, but so far it has not been released in full.
According to the second bill, however, the law will also apply to individuals who receive funding from abroad and is not a diplomat, consul, or employee of the diplomatic service or consular office.
The new bill provides for up to five years in prison for failure to comply with its requirements
Where else is there a similar law?
The authors of bills often appeal to a similar law in the US and say it is actually less strict than that.
The American law in question is FARA (Foreign Agents Registration Act),adopted in the United States in 1938 before World War II. The purpose of this law was to protect the American population from the influence of Nazi propaganda from the Third Reich.
This law has undergone a number of changes — the definition of agents has been simplified and narrowed. The latest version of the law was limited only to those people and organizations that act on the direct orders of foreign states or organizations.
FARA does not apply to media or NGOs. In America, there are more PR and marketing companies registered.
As for the Russian law on foreign agents, its first version was adopted in the Russian Federation ten years ago, in 2012. Initially, the law only applied to political organizations, but little by little the scope of the law expanded.
- In 2017, the law concerned the media;
- In 2019 – individuals (meaning all bloggers and journalists who received funding from abroad)
- In 2020 – all persons involved in “political activities” in the interests of a foreign state;
- In 2021, Russian-language media based in Russia and neighboring democratic countries were declared agents;
- In 2022, the law applied to everyone who was politically active and received any support from abroad;
- And finally, after the start of the war in Ukraine, this persecution affected all the critics of the authorities.
- Over time, the law has completely suppressed free and critical thought in Russia.
Almost all organizations, journalists and activists affected by this law have left the country. Hundreds of organizations have been abolished.
There is no such law active anywhere in Europe.
Why is the bill criticized?
Those who oppose the bill say the same thing — its purpose is to curtail the activities of those who criticize the government.
This law will affect not only the media and NGOs, but also average citizens — ethnic and religious minorities, LGBTQ people, young people who want to study abroad or open their own small business, etc.
“This bill is a response to hundreds of facts of violence, corruption, lawlessness and violations of the electoral right, which are studied and publicized by public organizations and independent media … This law will bring immeasurable harm to hundreds of thousands of citizens of Georgia,” a collective statement by various media and NGOs states, among whom is JAMnews.
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This bill will hinder Georgia’s integration into the European Union, according to the External Relations Service of the European Union.
The UN fears that the law will interfere with its work in Georgia.
“This law is an example of why we are talking about the decline of democracy in Georgia,” US Senator Jean Shasheen said.
“The proposed law will stigmatize and silence the independent voices and citizens of Georgia who are committed to building a better future for their community,” State Department spokesman Ned Price said at a briefing in Washington.
“We believe that the bill is controlling and restrictive – a repetition of the practices of authoritarian states, which undermines freedom of association and expression, poses a serious threat to democracy and civil society in the country,” the Netherlands Helsinki Committee said.
A similar conclusion can be read in studies and statements by local and international organizations.
The International Press Institute writes that Putin’s law on foreign agents was the Kremlin’s most powerful tool for suppressing press freedom and freedom of speech:
“Such legislation has absolutely nothing to do with a country that aspires to join the European Union and adheres to the principles of democratic government.”
“Resolute action against high-level corruption, strengthening the protection of journalists and the participation of civil society in the decision-making process are one of the conditions that Georgia must fulfill in order to achieve candidacy for the European Union,” Transparency International said in a statement.
The NGO Civic Idea says the law is the government’s clearest signal that it doesn’t actually want to join the European Union:
“Of all the anti-integration steps taken during the year-long process, the adoption of this bill will be the most striking demonstration of the anti-European and isolationist policies of the ruling party.”
“No country in the EU has legislation granting the status of “foreign agents” to non-governmental organizations,” argues the Institute for the Development of Freedom of Information, which believes that not only the adoption of this law, but even considering it is harmful for the country.
Where are we now?
On February 27, it became known that both bills prepared by the “People’s Power” would be sent to the Venice Commission after a first hearing, as stated by one of the authors of the bill, Dmitry Khundadze.
In the coming days, committee and plenary discussions of both bills will take place. This will be followed by a first hearing.
The authors of the bill are pushing for submission to the Venice Commission prior to spring.
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili plans to veto the law, but it may not be enough.
The only hope for the civil sector is the activity of the people. This law was one of the reasons why tens of thousands of people gathered on Rustaveli Avenue in Tbilisi on February 24.
Cover photo: June 20, 2022 On this day, tens of thousands of people gathered in Tbilisi to support the European course of Georgia. Photo: David Pipia / JAMnews
