Overshadowed by heavy protests, the parliament in Georgia voted in favour on Wednesday of a controversial law that plans to impose stricter checks on non-governmental organizations (NGO) in its second reading.
Of the 150 members of parliament, 83 voted in favour of the controversial legislative initiative and 23 voted against it. Three readings are required for the law to be adopted.
Tens of thousands took to the streets again on Wednesday evening, a dpa journalist at the scene witnessed. There have been repeated clashes between police and demonstrators leading up to the vote.
According to media reports, the police used water cannons, tear gas and rubber bullets against the demonstrators. Several people were injured.
The Ministry of the Interior justified the police crackdown on the demonstrators by saying that they had tried to break down the doors of parliament.
In order to restore order, the officers used pepper spray and water cannons, among other things, the ministry said on Wednesday evening.
The law is intended to limit the alleged influence of foreign countries on civil society in Georgia, an EU-accession candidate.
Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze has already announced that the third reading will be held in a fortnight despite the protests.
Another two weeks later, parliament will then overrule President Salome Zourabichvili's expected veto of the law, he said at a press conference.
The contentious legislation, similar to Russia's "foreign agent" law, requires that NGOs receiving more than 20% of their funding from abroad must disclose these sources.
Many projects promoting democracy in the South Caucasian republic receive financial support from EU countries and the United States.
The ruling Georgian Dream party says the aim of the law is greater transparency, but critics say the law could be misused to stop the flow of funding and persecute pro-Western groups.
The Georgian Dream party has been in power since 2012 and is taking an increasingly authoritarian stance ahead of parliamentary elections in the autumn.
The pro-European demonstrators fear that this course will jeopardize the country's hopes for EU membership.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said she was "following the situation in Georgia with great concern and condemn the violence on the streets of Tbilisi."
"The Georgian people want a European future for their country," von der Leyen said in a post on X, formerly Twitter. "Georgia is at a crossroads. It should stay the course on the road to Europe."
The EU's top diplomat, Josep Borrell, also criticized the government's crackdown on protesters.
"I strongly condemn the violence against protesters in Georgia who were peacefully demonstrating against the law on foreign influence. Georgia is an EU candidate country, I call on its authorities to ensure the right to peaceful assembly," he said on X.
Meanwhile, the prime minister justified the harsh police action. He emphasized at a press conference on Wednesday that authorities had acted solely within the framework of the law.
Although the ongoing protests were uncomfortable, the adoption of the hotly debated law would protect the country from polarization and radicalization in the long term, Kobakhidze said.