The EU called on Georgia to abide by its commitments to uphold democracy, the rule of law and human rights.
The EU has expressed serious concern about the statement by the Georgian ruling party Georgian Dream over plans to adopt a law “on foreign agents” and regrets that it will be reconsidered, despite the negative reaction of public and the international community in March 2023. This was stated in a statement by the European Commission’s foreign policy representative Peter Stano, European Pravda reports.
It is noted that the creation and maintenance of an enabling environment for civil society organizations and ensuring the freedom of the media are the basis of democracy, which is also important for EU accession.
Stano recalled that Georgia received candidate status after completing the relevant steps set out in the recommendation of the European Commission on November 8, 2023.
“Step 9 includes a recommendation for Georgia to ensure the free activity of civil society, and Step 1 calls on Georgia to combat disinformation directed against the EU and its values,” he said.
According to the speaker, transparency should not be used as a tool to limit the ability of civil society to act freely.
“We call on the political leadership of Georgia to accept and implement reforms that are in line with the stated goal of joining the European Union, which is supported by the vast majority of citizens,” Stano stressed.
The EU also called on Georgia to abide by its commitments to uphold democracy, the rule of law and human rights.
We remind you that a bill on “foreign agents” is being reintroduced in the Georgian parliament.
Let’s remember that last year there was an attempt to pass a bill on “foreign agents” that caused mass protests across Georgia. The protesters were supported by Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili.
On March 9, the ruling Georgian Dream party and the People’s Power movement decided to withdraw from the parliament the bill on “foreign agents”, which was adopted in the first reading. On March 10, the Georgian parliament rejected the controversial bill in second reading.
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Source: korrespondent
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.