TBILISI: The Georgian parliament has approved in a third and final reading a law on foreign agents, which is identical to the US’ Foreign...
TBILISI: The Georgian parliament has approved in a third and final reading a law on foreign agents, which is identical to the US’ Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), according to a broadcast of the plenary session on the parliament's website.
86 deputies voted for the law, there were no votes against.
In early February, the ruling Georgian Dream - Democratic Georgia party said that it would adopt a FARA analogue. According to the party, the new law will be more effective, than the law on Transparency of Foreign Influence adopted last May, in combating financing from abroad of the non-governmental organizations whose real goal is to support revolutionary processes in the country. The Georgian law, unlike the American one, does not apply to individuals and implies only fines for a failure to file an annual income declaration. American law provides for a prison sentence of up to 5 years.
The explanatory note to the draft law states that the majority of NGOs funded from abroad decline to register in the register, which is why "it is necessary to adopt a law that will ensure the proper execution of the legislator's intent." It also mentions that the new US administration confirms that foreign financing of organizations was often used to fund destabilization in various countries, including Georgia. The adoption of an equivalent of the American model is necessary to restrict the "influence of external forces on the activities of state institutions." The Anti-Corruption Bureau of Georgia will supervise the implementation of the new law.
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