Violence during protests in Georgia against "Kremlin-inspired" draft law

Tbilisi/Kiev - Police once again used violence against demonstrators during anti-government protests in Georgia on Thursday night.

Critics of the government in Georgia have protested in the capital Tbilisi for the second evening in a row.
Critics of the government in Georgia have protested in the capital Tbilisi for the second evening in a row.  © Zurab Tsertsvadze/AP/dpa

According to eyewitness reports, the pro-European demonstrators surrounded the parliament of the South Caucasus republic in Tbilisi. Some tried to break into the building.

The police used tear gas and water cannon, as they had done the previous evening, as Georgian television stations showed. According to media reports, Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili called on the demonstrators to remain peaceful. According to the newspaper Georgia Today, several more arrests were made.

The protest was sparked by a controversial draft law: similar to Russia, the Georgian leadership wants to classify media and non-governmental organizations that receive money from abroad as foreign agents.

According to US State Department spokesman Ned Price (40), the "Kremlin-inspired" draft law is "incompatible with the Georgian people's clear desire for European integration and democratic development".

Implementing the plans would damage Georgia's relationship with its strategic partners and call into question the country's "Euro-Atlantic future", Price said in Washington on Wednesday (local time).

Solidarity with Ukraine attacked by Russia

The state reacts harshly to the protests.
The state reacts harshly to the protests.  © Zurab Tsertsvadze/AP/dpa

According to observers, between 10,000 and 15,000 people had gathered peacefully at the parliament by early Wednesday evening. There were more than on Tuesday, a reporter from the German Press Agency reported.

During the protests the day before, police in the South Caucasus republic had arrested 66 demonstrators, according to official figures.

On Wednesday, the demonstrators also waved Georgian and Ukrainian flags as well as the blue star flag of the EU. The Georgians also sang the Ukrainian anthem in solidarity with Ukraine, which is under attack from Russia. During the later street battles, the police pushed away the remaining demonstrators, who in turn threw stones and bottles.

Human rights activists from Freedom House expressed alarm at the violence in Tbilisi. "The fundamental right to peaceful assembly must be protected against Molotov cocktails, tear gas and water cannons," the non-governmental organization demanded on Twitter.

It urged the Georgian government to reconsider the controversial draft law.

Russia exerts pressure on Georgia

Demonstrators with Georgian, Ukrainian and EU flags gather in front of the Georgian parliament building.
Demonstrators with Georgian, Ukrainian and EU flags gather in front of the Georgian parliament building.  © Zurab Tsertsvadze/AP/dpa

The small ex-Soviet republic of Georgia on the Black Sea with a population of 3.7 million has long been under pressure from its large neighbor Russia. Moscow also supports the seceded territories of South Ossetia and Abkhazia.

The current leadership of the Georgian Dream party pursues a rather pro-Russian course.

However, the majority of Georgians want their country to become a member of the EU and NATO. They fear that this opportunity will be destroyed by authoritarian rules like those in Moscow.

President Salome Zurabishvili (70) has backed the demonstrators and announced that she will not sign the controversial agent law.