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image source, Reuters
The protesters argue that the government is under the influence of Russia.
The political and ideological war between Russia and the West has moved to Georgia, in Eastern Europe.
After massive protests and international condemnation, the ruling party of that country announced that it will withdraw the controversial “foreign agents” bill that its critics compared to one approved in the powerful neighboring country.
Thousands of protesters took to the streets of the capital Tbilisi this week to express their anger as the bill was being considered in parliament, which ended in clashes with police in that city.
This once again revealed the great division that exists between the authorities and the part of the population that wants a rapprochement with the European Union (EU).
It is a political break that became evident earlier when the country’s government refused to take sides regarding the war in Ukrainewhile many Georgians sympathized with Kyiv and some even went to fight against the Russian army.
On Wednesday night, thousands of Georgians again took to the streets of central Tbilisi to protest, after parliament approved in one of its chambers the controversial bill that critics say will limit freedom of the press and it will be used to suppress NGOs and other civil rights organizations.
Riot police used water cannons and pepper spray to disperse protesters in front of the Parliament building, with some in the crowd chanting “down with Russian law”, a reference to the fact that the proposed bill has similarities with a legislation passed in Russia a few years ago under the government of Vladimir Putin.
But this controversy is just the latest chapter in a broader struggle over the direction of the country between those who advocate rapprochement with the EU and those who want closer ties with Moscow.
The controversial proposal required all NGOs and media outlets that receive more than 20% of their funding from abroad to be included in a special register and submit an annual financial statement. Failure to submit such a statement, the law said, would be punished with a US$9,500 fine.
Georgia’s Ministry of Justice said this move would help expose “agents of foreign influence” in the country. Supporters of the law argued that the United States has similar legislation: the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA).
image source, Getty Images
Protesters clashed with riot police in Tbilisi this week.
Opponents of the law see it as an attempt to mimic Russia’s crackdown on free speech and a sign that Moscow’s influence is growing. Fundamentally, they see the law as a major impediment to Georgia’s chances of joining the EU.
Georgia’s current ruling party, Georgian Dream, has held a majority in Parliament for more than a decade. Although in theory he supports Georgia’s rapprochement towards the EU and its valuesin practice he is also a friend of Russia.
Many argue that it is a choice born of pragmatism, necessary due to the recent history of the country.
past trauma
The former Soviet republic of Georgia became independent in 1991, but experienced a period of internal instability for much of the following decade, during which the Abkhazia region declared its own independence.
Tbilisi has said that the breakaway region was occupied by Russia and has stayed busy ever since.
In the 2000s and 2010s, Georgia opened its economy to foreign investment and tried to clean up corruption and move closer to the EU and NATO.
image source, Getty Images
Russia occupied the Georgian region of South Ossetia in 2008.
In 2008, after a five-day war, Russian troops occupied another Georgian region, South Ossetia, a small mountainous area northwest of the capital.
Later, the region also proclaimed its independence, which is recognized by a handful of countries, including Russia itself, as well as Syria and Venezuela. South Ossetia is still effectively under Russian occupation.
image source, Getty Images
Georgia’s relationship with the European Union is a key point of division between the government and the protesters.
The majority of Georgians do not want more conflict and, according to opinion polls, the majority would also like to see the problem of South Ossetia and Abkhazia resolved peacefully.
War in Ukraine and internal divisions
The government’s refusal to openly support Ukraine or impose sanctions on Moscow after the full-scale invasion of February 2022 has angered many Georgianswho see this conflict as a Russian aggression.
This neutrality is highlighted by a giant illuminated screen reading “Tbilisi: A City of Peace” installed by the authorities, but contrasts with the fact that many Georgians have volunteered to fight in a foreign legion alongside the forces. Ukrainians against the Russian army.
David Ratiani, whose portrait is displayed next to his home, was killed fighting Russian forces in the Ukraine.
One such fighter was David Ratiani, a former military officer who fought in Abkhazia and later served with the Georgian contingent of the NATO-led mission in Afghanistan.
When the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine began, the 52-year-old father of three went to fight in Ukraine. There he died in combat.
The exact number of Georgians fighting in the Ukraine is unknown, but is believed to be several hundred. Dozens have died on the battlefield.
David Ratiani wanted his daughter, Mariam, to live in “a better country.”
David Ratiani’s widow, Iya, says her husband was convinced that joining the Ukrainian cause was the right thing to do.
“He told me that he was doing it for our children, so that they don’t have to take up arms when they grow up and so that they can live in a better country. He said that our country will be better if Ukraine wins this war and that he had to help Ukraine”.
The Tbilisi authorities tried to prevent the Georgian volunteers from leaving for Ukraine, saying that would lead the country directly into the conflict. In the end, many made it to the Ukraine, but Tbilisi had distanced itself from these fighters.
image source, Iya Shashviashvili
David Ratiani’s widow, Iya, says her husband saw the Ukraine struggle as Georgian history repeating itself.
Iya says that her last conversation with her husband was on March 16 of last year. They were able to speak via video call. She even tried on a new dress and her husband complimented her on how well the color red looked on her.
I could see that he was worried and stressed. He told her how surprised he was when he entered a Ukrainian house, recently abandoned by its inhabitants who had had to leave everything behind to flee the fighting.
“Told me: ‘This is Georgian history repeating itself in Ukraine’referring to the Georgians who fought against the Russian forces in Abkhazia in the 1990s,” recalls Iya.
War and peace
On the first anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Georgian government called for calm, insisting that its position was motivated by a desire to “preserve peace.” He also expressed concern that there are those who want to extend the conflict to Georgia.
image source, Getty Images
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili says he prioritizes peace and “taking care of his own country.”
“We are the government that prevented Georgia from becoming another theater of war and prevented provocations. If there had been a more destructive force in power, now a large part of Georgia, like Ukraine, would have become a zone Let’s live in peace and each of us take care of our own country,” Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili said.
But the opposition, along with many of their supporters, still took to the streets to mark the anniversary, in support of Ukraine and to remember those who had died, including Georgian fighters.
*This article is based on a BBC World Service report by Nina Akhmeteli in Tbilisi and Kateryna Khinkulova in London.
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