Georgia Approves Controversial ‘Foreign Agents’ Bill That Sparked Weeks of Mass Protests

TBILISI, Georgia — The Georgian parliament on Tuesday approved in the third and final reading a divisive bill that sparked weeks of mass protests.

The bill requires media and nongovernmental organizations and other nonprofits to register as “pursuing the interests of a foreign power” if they receive more than 20% of their funding from abroad.

Critics see it as a threat to democratic freedoms and the country’s aspirations to join the European Union.