Human Rights Watch (HRW) urged the Georgian Parliament on Wednesday to reject the ‘foreign agents’ bill.

Europe and Central Asia director at HRW Hugh Williamson argued that if the bill passes, “it could spell the end of Georgia’s independent civil society”. Besides posing problems for independent civil society in Georgia, HRW believes the government is “plunging Georgia ever deeper into a human rights crisis”. Williamson said that activists and groups will have “the false choice of accepting the unfounded and stigmatizing label of foreign agent, facing prison or exile, or abandoning their work altogether”. HRW claims Georgia ought to scrap the bill to ensure respect for human rights.

The proposed ‘foreign agent’ bill introduces strict measures forcing individuals and entities to register as under the influence of a foreign principal while engaging in political activities for the interests of that foreign agent. These individuals and entities must submit annual financial declarations and mark their public statements as “coming from a foreign agent”. Sanctions amount to fines up to €8,250 ($8,886) and five years in prison.

Arguably, the bill is set to impose stricter sanctions than the controversial ‘foreign agent’ law adopted in 2024. The bill is a response to the failure of several civil society organizations to register under previous laws. These restrictions could amount to human rights violations within the European framework. For instance, possible violations of the rights to freedom of expression and association protected under Articles 10 and 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). The ‘foreign agent’ law was already criticized both by the Council of Europe and the UN for violating human rights.

As the new ‘foreign agent’ bill awaits approval, the Georgian Parliament has introduced more restricting legislative amendments. HRW argues these amendments are set to oppress peaceful protesters. In 2024, following the ‘foreign agent’ law’s adoption, human rights groups condemned the use of force and harsh sanctions against protestors.

With this proposal, Georgia distances itself more from the European sphere. Kaja Kallas and Commissioner for enlargement Marta Kos recently mentioned that these legislative proposals demonstrate a “serious setback for Georgia’s democratic development and falls short of any expectations of an EU candidate country”. This also follows the Georgian Dream Party’s decision not to pursue the opening of EU accession in December 2024.

The proposal is set to be voted on in the Georgian Parliament during the week of March 31, 2025.

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) – Georgia is the only state in the country where cockfighting is not, by law, a felony. That could change as Senate Bill 102 creeps towards passage.

The bill would outlaw cockfighting and bring it under the same state statute that makes dogfighting a felony in Georgia. It would also make bringing a minor to an organized cockfight an aggravated misdemeanor.

The brutal sport of cockfighting features roosters with gaffs — essentially razor blades or daggers — attached to their legs in a fight to the death.

“Unfortunately, it’s way more common than people are aware of,” said Jessica Rock, an animal crimes prosecutor in Georgia. “There are organized cockfights going on in the State of Georgia every weekend.”

Rock is the first and one of the only state-funded prosecutors solely dedicated to animal cruelty cases. She’s been lobbying for the passage of SB 102 after another attempt at outlawing cockfighting, SB 255, failed in the legislature last year. Rock said people would be surprised at the scale of cockfighting events in Georgia.

“You’re talking about stadium seating, concessions stands, people from multiple other states bringing trailers of birds into Georgia to fight them,” she said. “You can make upwards of $100,000 or more on a derby, which is a series of cockfights that can occur over a day.”

As of now, there’s not much law enforcement in Georgia can do to prosecute serious cases of cockfighting. Sometimes, the best they can do is charge misdemeanor animal cruelty or misdemeanor gambling. But Rock also said it can be a gateway to much more serious crimes.

“Obviously, there’s gambling involved and then unfortunately, what we see a lot of times is drug trafficking, gun trafficking and human trafficking as well,” she said.

Cockfighting is already a federal felony, but bill sponsor State Sen. Randy Robertson (R-Cataula) said he wants Georgia to be able to handle their own investigations without the help of federal investigators.

“I think it’s something we can do on our own,” he said.

Cockfighting is vastly popular in many foreign countries. Robertson said a lot of the pushback he’s getting is from people for whom cockfighting is culturally ingrained. And he understands — his family used to attend cockfights when he was young and even raised fighting roosters.

“I understand the sport very well, but you know what? There are a lot of things we did many years ago that just don’t fit into the fabric of what Georgia is today,” he said. “I think it’s time we move beyond that.”

Like Rock, Robertson believes the only other opposition to this bill is from those who are making large sums of money on the sport.

“I would think it’s because they’re making – they or somebody that they care about – is making a profit off of it,” he said.

Said Rock: “They wouldn’t want to sign onto it if they’re engaged in cockfighting. I think it’s that simple.”

Copyright 2025 WANF. All rights reserved.

March 25, 2025

A new exhibit, “Interconnected: A One Health Exploration,” from Georgia Southern University’s Institute for Health Logistics & Analytics (IHLA) opens at the Georgia Southern Museum today, March 25, and runs through January 2026. The public is invited to join the opening reception from 5 to 7 p.m. tonight, with remarks at 5:30 p.m. by featured speaker Bruce Conn, Ph.D., from the One Health Center at Berry College.

One Health is a concept that highlights how human health is intricately connected to the health of animals, plants and the shared environment. 

The exhibit examines these connections, giving visitors an up-close look at how the health of one part influences the rest. The “Interconnected” exhibit is divided into four sections—human, animal, plant and environment—each demonstrating how changes in one can directly impact the others through vivid imagery and color.

“We hope visitors leave the exhibit with a deeper understanding of how improving health on a global scale leads to better health and well-being for all of us, as well as how they can make a positive impact at home in their own communities,” said Jessica Schwind, Ph.D., director of IHLA. “Understanding this interconnectedness is vital to our collective well-being.”

Young visitors will receive a One Health Explorer Journal activity booklet and have the opportunity to become a “One Health Hero,” with materials designed by IHLA’s Learning Experience Designer Michelle Tremblay. Every child who participates will receive a small prize. In addition, the exhibit will feature four hands-on activity stations designed to be fun and deepen visitors’ understanding of One Health.

“Interconnected: A One Health Exploration” also features an interactive animated series, which follows a group of One Health explorers as they learn how to improve health and well-being in their town. The series is presented on iPad stations throughout the exhibit that were custom-designed by Georgia Southern graphic design students Chantel Bailey and Haylie Hawkins. The series will also be available on the IHLA website. 

Collaborating with students to bring the One Health explorers to life helped exhibit developers combine storytelling and education in a captivating new way.

“Georgia Southern senior design practice students developed the design concept for this exhibit last fall,” said Brent Tharp, Ph.D., director of the Georgia Southern Museum. “We collaborated closely with IHLA to refine the content and design, ultimately creating an engaging and informative experience.”

As visitors leave the exhibit they can add their pledge for improving health through small, meaningful actions.

“Over the past year, we’ve worked diligently to develop an exhibit program that connects the public with ways they can positively impact both their own health and the health of others,” said Deborah Harvey, IHLA exhibit lead. “Exhibits like this, as well as our ‘Outbreak’ exhibit and traveling ‘Emergency Preparedness’ exhibit, are an effective way to inspire change and raise awareness about the importance of our collective well-being.”

For more information about the exhibit, visit GeorgiaSouthern.edu/ihla and look for the exhibits page.