During the plenary session on March 7, the legislative majority began the first reading of the "Foreign Agents" measures, despite resistance from people and requests from international allies to drop the proposals. On the same day, the Georgian Parliament passed a Russian-style bill "On Transparency of Foreign Influence" in the first reading by 76 votes in favor and 13 against. 

Tens of thousands of people gathered outside to demonstrate against the highly criticized rule, which has been compared to Russian law. As soon as the law was enacted, riot police were sent in and used water cannons and pepper spray to clear the sides of the chamber. During the whole night, riot police frequently used tear gas to disperse the protestors, who kept coming back to face them until the wee hours of the morning.

Reaction from Georgian Dream

On the same day, while commenting on the "Foreign Agents" bill, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili, who visited Germany to attend the ITB Berlin 2023 tourism fair, stated that the future of Georgia does not belong and will no longer belong to foreign agents or servants of foreign countries. "The future of our country and our people belongs to patriots," he added.

According to PM Garibashvili, the funding of these CSOs is not transparent. "The current campaign has no foundation whatsoever," the official added. The Prime Minister stated, "A minimum standard of accountability and transparency is a necessary requirement, fully in line with European and world standards. I recognize that it is painful for them because for years they have been receiving grants worth tens of millions of dollars with no transparency and accountability to the public, to our people." PM Garibashvili stated that similar regulations are in effect in other nations, referring to the US statute on foreign agents. "It is a sovereign decision of each nation, which legislation it needs at this moment," Garibashvili said, adding that the administration is trying its best to enhance the country's sovereignty. 

The Georgian Prime Minister continued by blaming the opposition, lamenting that trust in the Georgian opposition had been destroyed and that they had completely deteriorated. He said that support for opposition parties has fallen while support for the ruling party has grown, citing the findings of recent public opinion surveys. According to PM Garibashvili, it is tragic that certain members of the destructive, extremist opposition are still in office. Yet, he asserted that our people perceive things very well people are intelligent, accusing the United National Movement of handing over 20% of Georgian land to Russia.

At a press event at the Georgian Dream party's headquarters, Chairman Irakli Kobakhidze released a statement in reaction to the US Embassy's recent statement addressing the continuing protests in Tbilisi. "It is a bad day just for the extreme opposition and the forces associated with it," Kobakhidze said.

According to Kobakhidze, improving openness in civil organizations will result in the identification of organizations that are hostile to the interests of the nation and the church. According to him, openness will have a preventive impact, which will cause people to stop funding these groups. "The public is interested in who is financing them, with what funding, the relevant organizations, detractors of the church, entities demanding the resignation of the government, etc. When all this is transparent, it will immediately have a preventive effect. Basically, there will be a refusal even to finance such organizations that directly oppose the interests of the country and the interests of the church, and everything related to the identity of our country," Kobakhidze added.

Reaction from President

Salome Zourabichvili, the Georgian President, said, "I stand by your side [protesters] because today you symbolize free Georgia. Georgia will not allow anyone the right to take away its future because it sees its future in Europe. Nobody has the authority to ruin your future."

"I declared from the very first day that I would not sign it," Zourabichvili continued. "I have no desire to go over each piece in detail. The future of Georgia and the constitution, whose guarantor I am, concerns me. Moreover, the constitution mandates that all agencies and divisions of government make every effort to bring Georgia into Europe," the official added.

She stated emphatically that all those who voted for this measure were breaching the constitution and tearing Georgia away from Europe. "I appeal to all ambassadors who represent Georgia in EU nations or the US," the President said. "What else do you stand for besides the future of Europe? We all say we do not need this law; its main purpose is pulling us away from Europe. I assure you that we will move this nation to Europe because I made that commitment to myself a long time ago. We are unified now, and we will be united tomorrow," the President expressed.

International reaction

EU High Representative Josep Borrell stated that the final adoption of the law on "transparency of foreign influence" may have serious repercussions on Georgia-EU relations.

According to him, adopting the law in the first reading is a very bad development for Georgia and its people. "On Tuesday, the Georgian Parliament adopted the new law on transparency of foreign influence in a first reading. This is a very bad development for Georgia and its people. The law in its current form risks having a chilling effect on civil society and media organizations, with negative consequences for the many Georgians benefiting from their work. This law is incompatible with EU values and standards. It goes against Georgia's stated objective of joining the European Union, supported by many Georgian citizens. Its final adoption may have serious repercussions on our relations. The European Union urges Georgia to uphold its commitment to the promotion of democracy, the rule of law, and human rights, and recalls the right of people to a peaceful protest," the statement reads.

Moreover, the Foreign Ministers of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania released a statement on the developments in Georgia. The Ministers call on the Parliament of Georgia to responsibly assess the country's real interests and refrain from decisions that may undermine the aspirations of Georgia’s people to live in a democratic country that is advancing towards the EU and NATO. The Ministers also called on the Government of Georgia to respect people's right to a peaceful protest. "The first reading of the law on foreign agents passed by the Georgian parliament raises serious questions about the prospects of democracy in Georgia. We call on the Parliament of Georgia to responsibly assess the country's real interests and refrain from decisions that may undermine the aspirations of Georgia’s people to live in a democratic country that is advancing towards the EU and NATO. We call on the Government of Georgia to respect people's right to a peaceful protest", the statement reads.

European Council President Charles Michel also tweeted, "Strongly concerned about developments in Georgia. Right to peaceful protest is at the core of any democracy." According to him, adopting the "foreign influence" law is incompatible with the EU path. "Adoption of this 'foreign influence' law is not compatible with the EU path which the majority in Georgia wants. Commitment to rule of law and human values is key to EU project", he tweeted.

US Assistant Secretary of State Todd Robinson said: "Obviously, this is a law based on the interests of Russia, not the interests of Georgia. We think it is in the interests of Georgia to work more studiously in the direction of Euro-Atlantic integration, this law does not do that." According to him, adopting the bill is not the right thing for Georgia. "We think this is not right for Georgia, and what is even more important, Georgians also think so. We will continue to work with the Government of Georgia to ensure that we work together on their priorities, which is Euro-Atlantic integration," Todd Robinson said.