Georgia will ban face masks and other elements of clothing at rallies

The Georgian parliament will adopt a law banning face covering at rallies with masks and other elements of clothing. This was announced by Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze at a briefing on December 8. The broadcast of the speech was published on the Facebook page (owned by Meta, an organization recognized as extremist in Russia) of the Georgian Dream party.

According to Kobakhidze, the law will prevent acts of violence during rallies. It is specified that the bill will be prepared by December 15 and will come into force by the end of the month.

According to local media, presumably, the official ban will apply to goggles, respirators and gas masks, which also cover the face.

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Before that, on December 7, it became known that the Georgian police started using gas and rolled out water cannons against protesters on Rustaveli Avenue in Tbilisi. Izvestia correspondent Ilya Anikeev specified that the crowd of protesters began to disperse at that moment, but the protesters continued to move along Rustaveli Avenue.

Protests continue in Tbilisi over the suspension of negotiations on European integration. The protesters oppose the decision to postpone negotiations with the European Union (EU).

On December 2, Georgian security forces were forced to use tear gas to disperse demonstrators in the center of Tbilisi. On November 30, protesters attempted to set fire to the Georgian parliament building and damaged dozens of offices.

Amid these events, Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili refused to step down when her term expires at the end of December. In response, Kobakhidze warned that she would be required by law to leave office.

Before that, on November 28, the ruling Georgian Dream party decided to suspend until 2028 discussions with the EU on opening accession talks. As Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze specified, Georgia will continue to fulfill its obligations under the associated membership and free trade agreement and will fulfill them by 90% by 2028.