Parliament speaker in Georgia signs into law a bill that critics say curbs media freedom

By SOPHIKO MEGRELIDZE
Associated Press

TBILISI, Georgia (AP) — The speaker of Georgia’s parliament says he signed into law a divisive measure that has drawn weeks of protests by critics who say it will curb media freedom and hurt Georgia’s chances of joining the European Union. Speaker Shalva Papuashvili acted after the legislature, controlled by the ruling Georgian Dream party, overrode a veto of the bill by the president. The measure requires media, nongovernmental organizations and other nonprofit groups to register as “pursuing the interests of a foreign power” if they receive more than 20% of their funding from abroad. The opposition describes the law as part of efforts by Georgian Dream to pull the country into Russia’s sphere of influence — a claim the ruling party rejects.