The U.S. has imposed visa restrictions on dozens of Georgian officers in response to the enactment this week of a controversial “foreign agents” legislation after lawmakers voted to override a presidential veto, the State Department stated Thursday.
“This first tranche of visa restrictions comprises members of the Georgian Dream party, members of parliament, law enforcement and private citizens,” stated spokesman Matt Miller throughout a press briefing.
“It remains our hope that Georgia’s leaders will reconsider their actions and take steps to move forward with their nation’s long-stated democratic and Euro Atlantic aspirations. But if they do not, the United States is prepared to take additional actions,” stated Miller.
In his remarks, Miller stated the U.S. stays “deeply concerned” concerning the Georgian Dream occasion’s “anti-democratic actions, as well as its recent statements and rhetoric,” which he stated danger derailing Georgia’s European future.
The Georgian officers are accused of being chargeable for or complicit in undermining democracy in Georgia, equivalent to by undermining freedoms of peaceable meeting and affiliation, “violently attacking peaceful protesters, intimidating civil society representatives, and deliberately spreading disinformation at the direction of the Georgian government.”
On Monday, Georgia’s Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili signed the controversial “foreign agents” invoice into legislation.
The legislation on Transparency of Foreign Influence requires organizations, together with media retailers, which obtain greater than 20% of their funding from abroad to register with the state. It additionally requires them to publish annual monetary stories.
The legislation, which was first launched in March 2023, was shelved after it triggered mass protests that resulted within the arrest of 66 folks and the harm of greater than 50 legislation enforcement officers however was reintroduced to parliament in April, reigniting the protests.
Critics say the legislation would undermine democracy, labeling it a “Russian law,” however members of the ruling majority argue that it might enhance transparency.
Source: www.anews.com.tr