About 10,000 people took to the streets of the Georgian capital Tbilisi to protest a controversial "foreign influence" bill that critics say is a mirror image of repressive Russian legislation used to silence dissent.
The ruling Georgian Dream party reintroduced the bill in parliament earlier this month, a year after it was forced to abandon a similar measure following mass protests.
Georgia has sought for years to deepen its relations with the West, but the current ruling party has been accused of trying to steer the mountainous Caucasus state towards closer ties with Russia.
Chanting "No to the Russian law!" and waving Georgian and European Union flags, protesters gathered outside parliament as the legislature's legal affairs committee held its first hearing on the proposed law.
"Mass peaceful demonstration of civil society in Tbilisi against the 'Russian law'," wrote Salome Zurabishvili, Georgia's staunchly pro-Western president, who is in conflict with the ruling party.
Riot police "with water and gas cannons ready to move into action against civilians defending their European future. The arrests continue. Georgia will not surrender to re-sovietization!!!" she said.
Police detained at least four demonstrators during the peaceful rally, an AFP journalist witnessed.
Earlier, clashes broke out during the committee hearing when an opposition lawmaker punched a ruling party lawmaker, a co-sponsor of the bill, in the head.
The bill has sparked outrage in Georgia, with many arguing that it undermines Georgia's long-standing aspiration for EU membership.
"We reject this law, which is anti-European, it is a copy-paste from Russia's draconian law," said one of the demonstrators, student Maka Kvirikadze.
"Georgia will not be accepted into the EU with such anti-democratic laws, so we will not allow it to be passed," said another protester, dentist Giorgi Lashki.
"Georgia belongs in Europe, it will never be Russia's backyard again." / BGNES
