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The United States imposed visa restrictions on dozens of Georgian officials on Thursday, just three days after Georgia’s parliament enacted its controversial “foreign agent” law.
The restrictions apply to between “two and three dozen” unnamed members of the Georgian Dream party, members of parliament, law enforcement officials, and private citizens. US Department of State Spokesperson Matthew Miller stated:
Miller added, “It remains our hope that Georgia’s leaders will reconsider their actions and take steps to move forward with their nations long-stated democratic and Euro-Atlantic aspirations. But if they do not, the United States is prepared to take additional actions.”
The sanctions come under the new visa restriction policy announced by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken last month. The policy falls under Section 212(a)(3)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
Georgia’s “foreign agent” law requires media and nongovernmental organizations that receive more than 20 percent of their funding from foreign countries to officially register as foreign agents. The country’s parliament approved the bill in May despite mass protests that involved hundreds of protesters being arrested.
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk criticized the bill for suppressing civil society and undermining the freedoms of expression and association. Human Rights Watch further warned of the bill’s potential dangers, urging Georgia to abandon the legislation. In addition, various rights groups claimed the bill “threatens to equip the government with tools to suppress civil society and independent media, derailing Georgia from its democratic path towards EU integration.”
President Salome Zourabichvili vetoed the bill last month, agreeing with critics and asserting that the bill was similar to the Russian “foreign agent” law. The Georgian Dream Party, however, argued that the law protects the country from foreign meddling, and lawmakers overrode the president’s veto to enact the law on Monday.
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The restrictions apply to between “two and three dozen” unnamed members of the Georgian Dream party, members of parliament, law enforcement officials, and private citizens. US Department of State Spokesperson Matthew Miller stated:
Miller emphasized that the sanctions are the first step in a series of actions intended to redefine the relationship between the two countries. He noted that the US is “deeply concerned” with the Georgian Dream Party’s “anti-democratic” statements and actions, claiming the party is impeding Georgia’s chance to join the European Union and working against Georgia’s constitution and citizens.
Miller added, “It remains our hope that Georgia’s leaders will reconsider their actions and take steps to move forward with their nations long-stated democratic and Euro-Atlantic aspirations. But if they do not, the United States is prepared to take additional actions.”
The sanctions come under the new visa restriction policy announced by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken last month. The policy falls under Section 212(a)(3)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
Georgia’s “foreign agent” law requires media and nongovernmental organizations that receive more than 20 percent of their funding from foreign countries to officially register as foreign agents. The country’s parliament approved the bill in May despite mass protests that involved hundreds of protesters being arrested.
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk criticized the bill for suppressing civil society and undermining the freedoms of expression and association. Human Rights Watch further warned of the bill’s potential dangers, urging Georgia to abandon the legislation. In addition, various rights groups claimed the bill “threatens to equip the government with tools to suppress civil society and independent media, derailing Georgia from its democratic path towards EU integration.”
President Salome Zourabichvili vetoed the bill last month, agreeing with critics and asserting that the bill was similar to the Russian “foreign agent” law. The Georgian Dream Party, however, argued that the law protects the country from foreign meddling, and lawmakers overrode the president’s veto to enact the law on Monday.
The post US imposes visa restrictions on dozens of Georgia officials over controversial ‘foreign agent’ law appeared first on JURIST - News.
Continue reading...
Note: We don't have any responsibilities about this news. Its been posted here by Feed Reader and we had no controls and checking on it. And because News posted here will be deleted automatically after 21 days, threads are closed so that no one spend time to post and discuss here. You can always check the source and discuss in their site.