“Brussels has become a symbol of hypocrisy, accusing others of what it itself is guilty of. Georgian legislation provides for transparency in lobbying,” said the Speaker of the Georgian Parliament, Shalva Papuashvili.

When asked about the information published on the European Parliament’s website, which states that the European Parliament supported legislation on transparency of lobbying by third countries within the European Union and the establishment of a relevant register, Papuashvili responded:

“When these regulations were first discussed, they were delayed because there were other issues they needed to resolve first. They postponed them so as not to do what they now accuse Georgia of, as if we have no right to demand transparency regarding external influences.

Time has passed, and now they try to present it differently, as if it’s something separate from Georgia’s approach. This is sheer hypocrisy. Today, Brussels has become a symbol of hypocrisy, accusing others of what it is actually doing itself. That’s the clearest proof of their duplicity. They want to dismiss it as a matter of civil society or NGOs, but how do they think it applies? Surely it concerns everyone engaged in lobbying.

Isn’t Transparency International involved in lobbying in Georgia? They testify before Congress and parliaments abroad against Georgia, attempting to impose various regulations on us with foreign funding. Who was lobbying for the ‘vetting’ system here in Georgia? Were these NGOs not lobbying through Brussels’ funding? That’s precisely what lobbying is, and our legislation demands transparency in this area.

It is shameful that, in this country, people are being turned against one another with funding from Brussels, while their own hired NGOs are being used directly against the government and parliament. Last year, they nearly set fire to the parliament building, throwing Molotov cocktails, and now they are quietly calling for transparency in lobbying to serve their own interests. Our legislation makes lobbying transparency obligatory. I sincerely hope Brussels will respect Georgian law and cease hidden funding practices,” said Papuashvili.