What changed between the resolution motion and the resolution motion joint

Removed:C. whereas the proposed legislation would limit the capacity of civil society and media organisations to operate freely, curtail freedom of expression and unfairly stigmatise organisations that deliver clear benefits to the citizens of Georgia;

Added:C. whereas the European Union expects Georgia, a candidate country for EU accession, to abide fully by the Association Agreement and other international commitments it has made and, in particular, to fulfil the conditions and take the steps set out in the Commission’s recommendation of 8 November 2023; whereas the European Council decided to grant candidate status to Georgia solely on the understanding that these steps would be taken; whereas this recommendation called on Georgia to ensure that civil society was able to operate freely (step 9) and to fight disinformation against the EU and its values (step 1), and whereas the draft law violates both objectives;

Removed:D. whereas in March 2023, similar legislation sparked widespread protests in Georgia, leading to its withdrawal; whereas following the law’s withdrawal in 2023, the ruling party and pro-government media have continued to escalate rhetoric against civil society and journalists;

Added:D. whereas on 17 April 2024, the Georgian Parliament passed the so-called transparency of foreign influence law at first reading with 83 votes in favour and none against, despite mass protests by Georgian citizens, criticism from the President of Georgia, who called the draft law ‘sabotage of the country’s European path’, national and international condemnation and repeated calls from Georgia’s European partners to withdraw the draft law; whereas this law would require organisations receiving over 20 % of their funding from abroad to register within two months as ‘organisations pursuing the interests of a foreign power’ and label themselves as such; whereas the organisations would be subjected to additional scrutiny, reporting requirements and possibly sanctions, including administrative penalties of up to GEL 25 000; whereas the law would seriously restrict media and civil society organisations’ ability to operate freely;

Removed:E. whereas several popular protests took place in the capital Tbilisi and other Georgian cities as a reaction to the plans to adopt this bill; whereas Georgian riot police used excessive force – including pepper spray, beatings, and illegal detention – to disperse protesters against the bill;

Added:E. whereas the legitimate aim of ensuring transparency of non-governmental organisations receiving foreign funding cannot in any way justify measures which restrict their activities, especially not in the field of democracy, the rule of law and human rights;

Removed:F. whereas on 17 April 2024, the bill passed its first reading in parliament, despite mass protests, criticism from the President of Georgia who promised to veto the bill, and repeated calls by the EU and by Georgia’s other Western partners;

Added:F. whereas this draft law is being proposed at a time of increasing attacks against civil society and independent media in Georgia, as well as against democracy support from international donors in a seeming effort to narrow the civic space and silence critical voices in the public sphere, among other things by cutting access to foreign funding; whereas this draft law is only the latest in a series of pre-election legislative and other initiatives by the Georgian Government, which also includes the announcement of constitutional amendments to fight ‘LGBT propaganda’ and the reversal of a policy mandating gender quotas for women in parliament, which jeopardise democratic reforms and contribute to spreading disinformation about the EU, its values and policies; whereas the European Parliament has already called in previous resolutions for measures to reduce the destructive role played by oligarchic interests in Georgia’s politics and economy, including in the politically motivated persecution of journalists and political opponents such as former president Mikhail Saakashvili, for whom Parliament has called to be released on humanitarian grounds for the purpose of seeking medical treatment abroad;

Removed:G. whereas in the 2023 Enlargement Package reports, the Commission recommended granting candidate status to Georgia on the understanding that Georgia takes nine steps, including combating disinformation and interference against the EU and its values, engaging opposition parties and civil society in governance, ensuring freedom of assembly and expression, as well as consulting and involving civil society meaningfully in legislative and policy-making processes and ensuring that they are able to operate freely;

Added:1. Strongly condemns the re-introduction of the controversial draft law on ‘transparency of foreign influence’ which would impose debilitating restrictions on civil society and independent media and thereby undermine the possibility of their operating freely, and has therefore been met with massive protests by the Georgian public, civil society organisations, independent media, prominent public figures and the country’s European and international partners alike;

Removed:H. whereas on 14 December 2023, Georgia was granted candidate status by the European Council on the understanding that the nine steps set out in the Commission recommendation would be taken;

Added:2. Underlines that the draft law is incompatible with EU values and democratic principles, runs against Georgia’s ambitions for EU membership, damages Georgia’s international reputation and endangers the country’s Euro-Atlantic integration;

Removed:I. whereas in recent years, the Georgian Dream party’s leadership has taken an increasingly illiberal and anti-Western turn, spreading disinformation about the EU, its values and its policies; whereas recently, the Georgian Dream majority announced constitutional amendments to fight ‘LGBT propaganda’, reversed a policy mandating gender quotas for women in parliament and pushed back against an EU recommendation to invite international experts to conduct integrity checks on Georgian judges;

Added:3. Stresses that EU accession negotiations should not be opened as long as this law is part of Georgia’s legal order;

Removed:1. Strongly condemns the re-introduction of the so-called ‘transparency of foreign influence’ law by the Georgian Dream party; underlines that this legislation is incompatible with European norms and values, damages Georgia’s reputation and jeopardises its EU accession efforts;

Added:4. Urges, therefore, the Georgian Parliament to halt the parliamentary proceedings leading to adoption of the law and urges the Georgian Government to honour the commitments it made in March 2023 when it announced that it would unconditionally withdraw its draft law to impose restrictions on civil society and independent media and would not propose such a law again; calls on the Government of Georgia also to abstain from submitting any further legislative proposals that contradict the principles of democracy, the rule of law, human rights and fundamental freedoms and which would therefore run counter to the Copenhagen criteria for EU membership;

Removed:2. Urges the Georgian Dream majority to immediately withdraw this law and the law curtailing LGBTQ+ rights, cease all attacks on civil society and independent media and ensure a genuine enabling environment for civil society and media in the country;

Added:5. Highlights that the draft law betrays the aspirations of the large majority of the Georgian people to live in a democratic society, continue democratic and rule of law reforms, pursue close cooperation with Euro-Atlantic partners and commit to a path towards EU membership;

Removed:3. Stands in solidarity with the courageous Georgian people fighting for their democratic rights and the European future of their country;

Added:6. Emphasises that the rights to freedom of expression and assembly and to peaceful protest are fundamental freedoms and must be respected under all circumstances, particularly in a country aspiring to join the EU;

Removed:7. Highlights that the constitutional amendments on so-called LGBT propaganda are not only an attack on the LGBTIQ+ community, but also against freedom of speech, against a free civil society as a whole and against European values, and are an obstacle for the EU accession efforts; condemns the planned ban on gender reassignment measures as a human rights violation against trans people and their physical autonomy and health; urges the initiators to withdraw the proposed constitutional amendments;

Added:10. Recalls that the European Council of 14 and 15 December 2023 granted Georgia candidate status on the understanding that the relevant steps set out in the Commission recommendation of 8 November 2023 would be taken; stresses that this recommendation called on Georgia to ensure that civil society was able to operate freely and to fight disinformation against the EU and its values, and that the draft law violates both objectives;

Removed:8. Calls on the Georgian Government to uphold its commitment to the promotion of democracy, the rule of law and human rights and encourages it to adopt and implement reforms that are in line with its stated objective of joining the European Union, as demanded by a large majority of Georgia’s citizens; reiterates, in that respect, its call on the Georgian authorities to release former President Mikheil Saakashvili on humanitarian grounds and to allow him to receive proper medical treatment abroad; emphasises that his case further highlights the importance of implementing genuine reform of the justice system;

Added:11. Reminds the Georgian Government of the commitments it made and the values and principles it subscribed to when it applied for EU membership and calls on the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement and the President of the Commission to do the same;

Removed:9. Reminds the Georgian authorities that Georgia’s European integration will only be possible through a genuine embrace and implementation of European standards and values;

Added:12. Invites the Commission to submit an interim assessment of Georgia’s progress related to the implementation of the nine steps indicated in the Commission recommendation of 8 November 2023;