Georgia faces unrest as Zourabichvili and Saakashvili rally
The pro-Western President of Georgia, Salome Zourabichvili, announced on Sunday evening that she does not recognise the results of the country's parliamentary elections. She has organised a demonstration in the centre of Tbilisi for Monday.
During a press conference after meeting with opposition leaders, Zourabichvili stated that Georgian voters were victims of a "Russian special operation".
The demonstration announced by the president is scheduled to begin on Monday on Rustaveli Avenue.
Saakashvili: Time for major protests
Former President Mikheil Saakashvili declared on Sunday that none of the opposition parties should accept parliamentary mandates following Saturday's elections in Georgia.
- Of course, no one from the opposition should enter parliament! This is not the time for self-pity because we were deceived. It is time for major protest actions to show the world that we are fighting for freedom and that we are a nation that will not accept injustice - appealed the former president, who is serving a prison sentence for abuse of power, which he and his supporters consider politically motivated.
The party founded by Saakashvili, the United National Movement, announced that it does not recognise the results of Saturday's elections and, consequently, will not accept parliamentary mandates. The opposition Coalition for Change also declared that it renounced the mandates it officially won in the elections because it did not want to legitimise them.
Mamuka Mdinaradze, secretary of the ruling Georgian Dream party, commented on these statements, saying that if the opposition does not enter parliament, there will "at least be a normal environment for work" and there will be no "sabotage from the agency". He called on the opposition "to keep their word".
