Thousands of people protested pro-EU in Georgia last night to condemn the results of the elections on October 26, which they say were tainted by fraud organized by the ruling party "Georgian Dream", reported Agence France-Presse, quoted by NOVA.
According to official results, the election was won by the party, which has been in power since 2012 and has been accused by its supporters of conservative and authoritarian pro-Russian tendencies and of wanting to push Georgia away from the European Union and NATO - a charge it denies .
The pro-European opposition refuses to recognize the official election results. President Salome Zurabishvili stated that a sophisticated fraud system based on "Russian methodology" was used in the elections. The Kremlin rejected accusations of interference, while the EU and the US pointed to violations and called for an investigation, AFP summarizes.
Thousands of people took part tonight in the second protest after the announcement of the results in front of the Georgian parliament, located on the main boulevard in the capital Tbilisi.
"The Georgian people will never accept falsified election results. An invincible protest movement is growing that will sweep away the regime that stole our votes," said Nika Melia, leader of the opposition party "Ahali". He called on those gathered for daily protests starting Tuesday. Another opposition figure, Mamuka Hazaraji, head of the Coalition for Change, has called for new elections and an international investigation into the alleged fraud.
Opposition supporters participating in the protest told AFP that "Georgians will never accept rigged elections". They accuse "Russia and its students" of "wanting to steal not only the choice of the Georgian people, but also their European future".
Last week, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze promised that European integration remains a "main priority" of Tbilisi. But some leaders of "Georgian Dream", including its leader - the influential and wealthy Bidzina Ivanishvili, who amassed his fortune in Russia, made numerous anti-Western statements during the election campaign, notes AFP.