Opposition Government of Georgia Parliamentary majority Giorgi VashadzeZurab JaparidzeElene KhoshtariaAleko ElisashviliNika Gvaramia Salome Zourabichvili Irakli GaribashviliIrakli KobakhidzeBidzina IvanishviliMamuka MdinaradzeVakhtang GomelauriGrigol Liluashvili Zviad "Khareba" Kharazishvili [ru] 2023: UnspecifiedSome were injured135 protesters arrested[4] 15 April – 15 May 2024: 185 arrested[5] 2023: 58 officers injured;[6] "several hospitalized"[7] 15 April – 15 May 2024: In 2023 and 2024, a series of street demonstrations took place throughout Georgia largely in opposition to the proposed "Law on Transparency of Foreign Influence", which would require non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to register as foreign agents or "organizations carrying the interests of a foreign power" and disclose the sources of their income if the funds they receive from abroad amount to more than 20% of their total revenue.

It also recommended the European Council to sanction the founder of the ruling Georgian Dream party Bidzina Ivanishvili for "his role in the deterioration of the political process in Georgia".

[26] After the end of his presidency and his departure from Georgia, Saakashvili was sentenced in absentia in 2018 by the Tbilisi City Court for abuse of power, embezzlement and his implication in the beating of opposition MP Valery Gelashvili.

[31][32] Georgian Dream parliamentarian Dimitri Khundadze questioned Georgia's policy of EU membership, saying, "We won't give up our dignity to get [candidate] status!

[39] On 2 August 2022, MPs Sozar Subari, Mikheil Kavelashvili, Dimitri Khundadze and Guram Macharashvili left ruling Georgian Dream and established the People's Power movement.

[52] Judicial reforms were among the twelve conditions set by the EU for Georgia to get the candidate status, although according to People's Power, the proposal was aimed at "subjugating the Georgian judiciary to foreign control".

[58] Georgian Dream and People's Power movement claimed the bill was based on the "American model", referring to the Foreign Agents Registration Act in the United States.

[100][101] On 17 April, approximately 35,000 protesters went on the streets of Tbilisi and blocked roads in front of the Georgian Parliament Building, there were also hundreds of riot police in the area to make arrests.

[104] He also stated that CSOs attempted to “organize a revolution” from 2020 to 2022, "attack and discredit the Georgian Orthodox Church", spread "LGBT propaganda" and initiate direct armed conflict with Russia as a "second front" in the Russo-Ukrainian War.

[107] The protesters marched towards the Atoneli Presidential Palace on 20 April to meet President Salome Zourabichvili and express support on her stance over vetoing the Transparency bill and pardoning Lazare Grigoriadis.

[110] MEP Miriam Lexmann said that the bill would undermine "the work of civil society and independent media", calling the European Council to impose sanctions on Bidzina Ivanishvili, the leader of the ruling party.

[112] Archbishop of the Georgian Orthodox Church Zenon Iarajuli [ka] of the Dmanisi and Agarak-Tashiri Eparchy denounced the bill, claiming it "threatens to stigmatize individuals and organizations", is non-Christian and "a violation of the Constitution".

[114] By this point, voices within the opposition movement have suggested an armed struggle against the GD, which U.S. State Department spokesmen Vedant Patel denounced, calling for the protests to remain peaceful.

[116] Kakha Kaladze, the GD Secretary General called the resolution "trash" and "shameful" with the sole purpose "to agitate people, confuse our society, and incite the spark of protest".

[116] Meanwhile, Giorgi Vashadze, MP for Strategy Aghmashenebeli stated that the EP resolution made it clear that the GD "chose a path which is not the choice of the Georgian people, that you went against the will of the citizens of Georgia".

[121] That same day Tbilisi City Court Judge Koba Chagunava ordered members of the opposition who were protesting against the bill to pay a fine for "disobedience to the lawful request of a police officer" and petty hooliganism.

He said that the foreign-funded NGOs organized a Rose Revolution in Georgia and that Mikheil Saakashvili's government was appointed from abroad, calling it an "inhumane and sadistic dictatorship" and a "pseudo-elite nurtured by a foreign country".

[174] European Union foreign policy head Josep Borrell said the draft law was a "very bad development" for Georgia and its people, with a "chilling effect on civil society and media organizations".

He stated that the EU stands with the Georgian protestors and condemns "the intimidation, threats and physical assaults on civil society representatives, political leaders and journalists, as well as their families" as "unacceptable".

He said that the NGOs like National Endowment for Democracy secretly financed the radical opposition groups in Georgia and that the United States and the European Union opposed the bill because they did not want their influence to become transparent, and that they encouraged what he described as a disinformation campaign and hysteria against the proposed law.

[186] Maria Zakharova criticized the European Union's position regarding situation in Georgia and accused Josep Borrell of "crossing the limits of decency" and "putting pressure on Georgian citizens".

[citation needed] Russian President Vladimir Putin's press secretary Dmitry Peskov said that Russia had nothing to do with the bill and that it was more similar to the Foreign Agents Registration Act in the United States.

In the "Inciting division and confrontation to undermine the stability of other countries" chapter, the report accused the NED of funding the local NGOs in Georgia since the beginning of the 21st century to instigate protests.

[197] The letter also said that if the bill were passed, the Senate would begin proceedings into sanctioning GD leadership and lawmakers, the end of U.S. financial assistance to Georgia, and the expansion of visa bans to the United States.

She elaborated that if the parliament overrides the potential veto and if the legislation, which runs counter to the democratic EU and NATO values, were to pass, then "it will compel us to fundamentally reassess our relationship with Georgia".

[199] On 23 May, Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced a visa restriction policy targeting individuals involved in "undermining democracy in Georgia" and initiated a comprehensive review of all U.S.-Georgia cooperation.

He noted that both the "national security law" and the repressive tactics used to quell legitimate dissent "undermine Georgia's democracy" and contradict its long-stated goal of Euro-Atlantic integration and strategic partnership with the United States.

However, he expressed disappointment with the Georgian government's recent actions, specifically referencing the controversial “foreign agents” law and misleading statements by officials that conflict with European Union and NATO standards.

Despite these concerns, Biden emphasized the strong, enduring partnership between the United States and Georgia, grounded in shared values of peace, stability, freedom, and human rights.

[204] Georgian Dream rejected the report, saying there are "many unsubstantiated and conflicting legal reasonings as well as a number of gross distortions of facts", which "undermines the credibility of the institution and the values it should serve".