 "'You punch, I punch': Watch as Georgian lawmakers brawl in parliament over proposed 'foreign agents' law")
New Delhi: Members of Georgia’s parliament were seen fighting during a parliamentary committee hearing as they discussed a proposed law, which seeks to force some organisations to list themselves as ‘foreign agents’. Critics say that the proposed law is modelled on draconian legislation in neighbouring Russia, which will curtail freedom of speech and stifle dissent in the civil society. What exactly happened in the parliament? The video footage from inside the parliament building in the capital Tbilisi showed a violent brawl between lawmakers. It appeared that the chairman of the chamber’s legal affairs committee was striking the leader of the United National Movement opposition party, according to Reuters.
Other lawmakers began jostling and hitting one another. Some of the men were escorted out of the room amid yells and screams. As a group of men tried to carry one woman away from the chairman’s podium, she threw down her papers. What does the proposed law say? The proposed law, which is still in its early stages, would apply to any organisation that receives more than 20 percent of its funding from abroad, requiring it to register as a foreign agent or else face a fine. Critics have compared it to a Russian law passed in 2012, which has since been steadily expanded and used to crack down on Russian civil society and independent media. They have portrayed the law as a symbol of Georgia’s authoritarian shift. According to Reuters, Irakli Pavlenishvili, a civil rights activist and opposition politician, said, “The Russian legislation that now is proposed in parliament is against Georgia’s national interests, against our European aspirations.” He added, “The whole international community and Georgian community is agreed on this topic.” DW reported that more than 60 media outlets and civil society groups in February said they would not comply with the law if it was passed. Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili has stated that she will veto the bill, although this could be overridden by Parliament. With inputs from agencies Read all the Latest News , Trending News , Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook , Twitter and Instagram .