TBILISI, March 12. /TASS/. Georgia’s Prime Minister Irakly Garibashvili has accused the opposition of manipulating the youth to destabilize the situation in the country during the protests.
"It is a direct anti-government undermining activity. Many young people, including students, were brainwashed. <…> How can they use this youth as a human shield, to send them to the foreground to throw Molotov cocktails? Some 60 policemen were hurt, several were nearly burnt alive. This will not be forgiven," he said in an interview with the Imedi television channel.
He slammed the United National Movement, Georgia’s biggest opposition party founded by former President Mikhail Saakashvili, as a fascist party and blamed other opponents of the authorities for "extremist" activities.
Thousands of people took to the streets of Tbilisi on March 7 and 8, after Georgia’s parliament adopted on first reading the Georgian version of a bill on registering foreign agents of influence. Both rallies ended late at night when security forces dispersed the protesters with water cannons and tear gas. More than 130 people were detained over two days of protests. Following the unrest, Georgia’s ruling party, the Georgian Dream, decided on the morning of March 9 to withdraw the bill. On the following day, the parliament voted against the initiative.
In February, the Georgian parliament registered two versions of the foreign agents bill, namely a Georgian iteration and an American one, the latter being a translation of the US Foreign Agents Registration Act. Under the Georgian version, a foreign agent is defined as a legal entity, including a media outlet, that receives more than 20% of its financing from foreign sources. The bill would not apply to individuals, whereas the US version applies to both legal entities and individuals, and stipulates criminal liability.
The initiative to enshrine the concept of foreign agents in law has given rise to serious criticism by both Georgia’s opposition and Western politicians.