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Georgian police, protesters clash over 'foreign agents' bill

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STORY: Georgian police clashed with protesters on Wednesday after parliament approved the second reading of a new controversial law which has been criticised as inspired by Russia.

The "foreign agents" bill would require organizations receiving more than 20% of their funding from abroad to register as agents of foreign influence which opponents feel will lead to a crack down on freedom of speech.

Ever-growing numbers of protesters have been taking to the streets in the capital Tblisi for almost a month with Wednesday's numbers in the tens of thousands leading to police firing tear gas and stun grenades at the large crowds who oppose the draft law.

Georgia's Health Ministry said 11 people, including six police officers, had received hospital treatment after Wednesday's altercations.

Georgian critics have dubbed the bill "the Russian law," saying it is inspired by laws used to suppress dissents in Vladimir Putin's Russia.

Russia is unpopular among many citizens of Georgia, which lost a brief war with Moscow in 2008.

Both the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the EU's foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell have condemned the violence.

The protests have pitched the ruling Georgian Dream party against a coalition of opposition parties, civil society groups, celebrities and the president.

On Wednesday, parliament, controlled by Georgian Dream and its allies, voted to advance the bill, angering protesters outside. The bill must pass one more vote before becoming law.

The bill's supporters, including Bidzina Ivanishvili, the billionaire founder of Georgian Dream and former prime minister, say the law would bolster sovereignty amid what he said were Western attempts to pit Georgia against Russia.

Last week - Footage broadcast on Georgian television showed Mamuka Mdinaradze, leader of the ruling Georgian Dream party's parliamentary faction and a driving force behind the bill -- being punched in the face by opposition MP Aleko Elisashvili while speaking from the despatch box.

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