TBILISI, DFWatch – A leading lawmaker in Georgia says he is positive to a new law proposal that would diversify access to the media.

Speaker of Parliament Davit Bakradze said Friday that he supports the introduction of the principles must-carry and must-offer.

This means that a cable network must carry a TV channel that offers its signal for free, and that TV channels can not refuse that cable networks carry their signal.

Democracy campaigners in Georgia have been campaigning for a law amendment that would enforce such rules.

The ruling National Movement party has until now shown a cold shoulder to the effort, but now seems set to approve it.

The campaign This Affects You Too is currently gathering signatures in order to qualify for submitting their proposal to parliament, which requires 30 000 signatures.

“Our main goal is that elections are conducted in a free and fair environment. Georgian legislation already defines very high standards of freedom and access to information, but our desire and goal is to even more improve this standard and Georgian democracy to be more positively developed history,” said Bakradze.