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Thousands Rally in Georgia Over Vote   11/05 06:27

   

   TBILISI, Georgia (AP) -- Thousands of opposition supporters rallied outside 
Georgia's parliament for the second straight Monday to denounce the Oct. 26 
election as illegitimate after the ruling party was declared the winner amid 
allegations of vote-rigging helped by Russia.

   The protesters, who waved Georgian and European Union flags, demanded a new 
parliamentary election under international supervision and an investigation of 
the alleged ballot irregularities.

   Opposition leaders vowed to boycott sessions of parliament and hold regular 
protests until their demands are met.

   "We will not accept illegitimate elections; we will not recognize an 
illegitimate parliament," said Badri Japaridze, leader of the Lelo Strong 
Georgia Coalition. "We will not go to that parliament, and we will not let (the 
ruling party) Georgian Dream announce itself as the legitimate representative 
of the Georgian people, because they have stolen the elections. This is a 
special operation backed by Russia, where the future of the Georgian people has 
been stolen, and we will not accept that."

   The protest Monday took place under the watch of riot police, reflecting the 
simmering political tensions in the South Caucasus country of 3.7 million 
people that lies between Russia and Turkey.

   The Central Election Commission said Georgian Dream won about 54% of the 
vote. Its leaders have rejected the opposition claims of vote fraud.

   President Salome Zourabichvili, who has rejected the official results, says 
Georgia has fallen victim to pressure from Moscow against joining the EU. 
Zourabichvili, who holds a mostly ceremonial position, has urged the United 
States and EU to support the demonstrations.

   Officials in Washington and Brussels have urged a full investigation of the 
election, while the Kremlin has rejected the accusations of interference.

   Giorgi Vashadze, leader of the United National Movement Coalition, said that 
the opposition is urging the West not to recognize the vote and will gather 
more evidence of violations to push for a new election. He vowed to organize 
protests not only in the capital but across the country.

   Georgian Dream, which has been in power since 2012, was established by 
Bidzina Ivanishvili, a shadowy billionaire who made his fortune in Russia.

   The opposition has accused it of becoming increasingly authoritarian and 
tilted toward Moscow. It has recently adopted laws similar to those used by the 
Kremlin to crack down on freedom of speech and LGBTQ+ rights.

   European election observers said the election took place in a "divisive" 
atmosphere marked by instances of bribery, double voting and physical violence. 
Observers said instances of intimidation and other violations were particularly 
prevalent in rural areas.

   The EU suspended Georgia's membership application process indefinitely 
because of its passage in June of a Russian-style "foreign influence law." Many 
Georgians viewed the parliamentary election as a pivotal referendum on the 
country's effort to join the EU.

   "I am angry that we are not on a European Union path at all right now," said 
Tbilisi resident Tornike Tsiramua, voicing hope that the protests will grow. 
"This election was fraudulent; we have all the evidence, and we need to push 
our government to ensure the elections are conducted fairly and freely."

   Georgian Dream promised to continue pushing toward EU accession but it also 
wants to "reset" ties with Russia, the country's former imperial master. In 
2008, Georgia fought and lost a brief war with Moscow, which then recognized 
the independence of two breakaway Georgian regions and bolstered its military 
presence there.

   Georgia's prosecutors last week launched an investigation of the alleged 
vote-rigging. The opposition immediately objected that the Prosecutor's Office 
would not conduct an independent investigation because its head was appointed 
by the Georgian Dream-controlled parliament.

   The investigation was requested by the Central Election Commission and 
Zourabichvili was summoned for questioning Thursday about the allegations. 
Others "who may possess information related to the alleged criminal act" also 
would be questioned, the Prosecutor's Office said. Zourabichvili said she would 
not obey the summons, arguing that the prosecutors should have found the 
evidence itself.

 
 
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