Overnight protests in Georgia have continued into Monday in a last-ditch effort to prevent the Government from passing what critics call the “Russia law”.
Georgia's parliament has green-lit a final vote on a proposed law which could pose a threat to media freedom and damage the country’s chances of joining the European Union.
The bill would require media, nongovernmental organisations and other nonprofits to register as "pursuing the interests of a foreign power" if they receive more than 20 per cent of their funding from abroad.
Tens of thousands of protesters marched through the Georgian capital Tbilisi on Saturday before gathering in front of parliament for a huge overnight rally on Sunday.
Ranks of police with shields and water cannons were positioned outside the parliament building as demonstrators, some wearing gas masks and swimming goggles, tried to block entrances.
Footage shared on social media appeared to show violent clashes between protesters and police, with many being blasted by water cannons.
Police sought to disperse the demonstration, and by Monday morning, only hundreds remained near parliament.
Georgia's Interior Ministry said 20 people were arrested in the morning, including three foreign citizens — two Americans and a Russian.
The opposition in Georgia denounces the bill as "the Russian law," because Moscow uses similar legislation to crack down on independent news media, nonprofits and activists critical of the Kremlin.
The bill is nearly identical to one that the governing Georgian Dream party was pressured to withdraw last year after street protests.
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Renewed demonstrations have rocked Georgia for weeks, with demonstrators scuffling with police, who used tear gas and water cannons to disperse the crowds.
The government says the bill is necessary to stem what it deems as harmful foreign influence over the country's politics and to prevent unspecified foreign actors from trying to destabilise it.
It took lawmakers less than a minute to give a green light to the third and final reading of the bill for Tuesday.
Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili, who is increasingly at odds with the governing party, has vowed to veto the law, but Georgian Dream has a majority sufficient to override a presidential veto.
The legislature approved a second reading of the bill earlier this month, after protests that drew tens of thousands of people.
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell has described the parliament's move as "a very concerning development" and warned that "final adoption of this legislation would negatively impact Georgia's progress on its EU path."
