Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili announced his intention to sign a controversial foreign agent bill that the legislature passed yesterday, overriding Georgian President Salome Zurabichvili’s veto, into law himself.
According to Papuashvili, the government does not expect Zurabichvili to do so anyway.
"The bill was submitted to the presidential administration yesterday. <…> It’s clear that she will highly likely not sign it. Correspondingly, I will sign this bill into law myself," Shalva Papuashvili said.
Georgia's foreign agents bill
In mid-May, the Georgian Parliament passed the law On the Transparency of Foreign Influence in the third reading. The law requires registration of non-commercial legal entities and media outlets in the country as “pursuing the interests of a foreign power” if they derive more than 20% of their funding from abroad.
After the veto is overridden, the bill returns to the president for signing. If Zourabichvili again refuses to sign the document, it will be signed and published by the parliament speaker. After publication, the law will come into effect.
