Georgian ombudsperson accuses Interior Ministry of provocations against opposition

26.04.09 18:53

Georgian Public Defender accuses the Interior Ministry of organizing provocations against the opposition. Sozar Subari demands that the facts of violence implemented on the rally members be immediately investigated. The ombudsmen presented two facts to media Sunday. He asserted balloons filled with water were thrown to the rally members from the Interior Ministry. Furthermore, an unknown person shot one of the rally members Tengiz Beridze from a pneumatic gun. The bullet lodged close to the eye in his face.

The ombudsman presented a video as evidence. He asserted the most dangerous thing is that those persons are occupying their positions even now, 12 hours later the incident. The opposition leaders were attending the briefing of the Public Defender as well.

Tents of protest all over the centre of Tbilisi

guys see this interesting article of civil.ge about the town cells of the people of Georgia:

Opposition activists and supporters, mainly those who have arrived from provinces in recent days, are keeping night vigil in over hundred improvised cells mushroomed on Rustaveli Avenue and Freedom Square.

Most of metal-framed boxes with ropes to imitate a prison cell are equipped with at least two mattresses and are coated with polyethylene to protect ‘inmates’ from rain.

Row of ‘cells’ on the Rustaveli Avenue starts immediately from outside the Tbilisi Marriott Hotel down towards the Parliament and then continues towards the Freedom Square, blocking traffic in the area and in nearby streets.

A space immediately in front of the Parliament and slightly beyond, of about couple of hundred meters in length, is left free of ‘cells’ leaving room for protesters, who are gathering there late in every afternoon.

Similar cells, but fewer in numbers are outside the government’s and Prime Minister’s office, close to the Parliament also blocking traffic on the adjacent small street; as well as outside the public TV headquarters, blocking traffic on key thoroughfare and at the presidential residence.

Opposition leaders, behind the ongoing protests, say that the campaign would continue unless President Saakashvili resigns. The authorities say dialogue is possible with the opposition on any major issues, except of the President’s resignation.

Most of the opposition leaders are striking an optimist tone in their routine speeches at the daily protests rallies saying that their struggle would accomplish “soon” and other saying – “in several days.”

Davit Usupashvili, leader of Republican Party, part of Alliance for Georgia, said in his extremely rare address to protesters late on April 24 that he is often asked by foreign journalists how close the opposition was to achieve its goal.

“But we are not asking this question: how close the goal is; because this is a goal, which needs to be achieved no matter how far it might be,” Usupashvili said.

http://civil.ge/eng/article.php?id=20789

New Report: Saakashvili escaped to Turkey

this article is from www.civil.ge  . while people protest on the streets of tbilisi the de facto president Saakashvili hides himself in Turkey:

Turkish Reports: Saakashvili in Turkish Resort Civil Georgia, Tbilisi / 26 Apr.'09 / 15:35 President Saakashvili arrived in Turkey's seaside resort, Bodrum, on April 25 for a holiday, The Journal of Turkish Weekly reported.   MP Marika Verulashvili, a close associate of President Saakashvili, however, has strongly denied the report and told Civil.Ge on Sunday that the President was in Sofia participating in the energy summit and would return back to Tbilisi on April 26. The President’s press office was not available for comment. Energy summit in the Bulgarian capital was held on April 24-25.

Georgian policeman was shot dead on the border with separatist South Ossetia

Georgian policeman was shot dead on the border with separatist South Ossetia - the Georgian Ministry of the Interior, for his death blame sniper`s fire from the territory "occupied" by Russian forces. Georgian minister of reintegration, accused Russia of the application of "state terrorism". The death of 27-year-old police officer also met with sharp criticism of the mission headquarters of international observers of the European Union.
For the incident occurred in the village Knolewi at the south-eastern border of South Ossetia. Shot with a professional carbine came equipped with a silencer from ossetians. But Ossetians argue that their troops stationed a few kilometers from the border with Georgia and "not have a gun, which could give a shot from the customs such a distance."
Command of Russian contingent stationed in South Ossetia also argues that none of the Russian troops did not participate in the incident. Cchinwali the garrison commander Anatoly Tarasow And their subordinates to increase the number of patrols in the buffer zone to prevent any exchange of fire between Ossetians and Georgians.
Minister for Foreign Affairs of Russia said that the death of a police officer is another provocation from Georgia. Sergei Merriam added that if Georgians complete sections of the ceasefire agreement and did not leave their posts, did not lead to such incidents.

Georgia is guilty of genocide

President Dmitry Medvedev has described Georgia's actions in the conflict zone as genocide. He has ordered Russian prosecutors to collect evidence of the crimes committed there.

”Georgia has exposed South Ossetia to a very crude and cynical aggression. People have died. Russian citizens have died, including local residents and peacekeepers. The actions of the Georgian side cannot be described as anything else but genocide.

“The information we have received suggests that horrible crimes were committed there. People were killed, burnt, run down by tanks, had their throats were cut,” Medvedev said.

The President went on to say that “the operation to restore peace will continue and those guilty will be punished”.

Earlier, after visiting a refugee camp in North Ossetia, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin also accused Georgia of genocide and said those responsible for war crimes should be prosecuted.

Comment of the Press and Information Department regarding Dutch TV false report on Russian invasion of Georgia

On January 3, 2009, the Dutch television station NOS in its programme NOS Journaal broadcast a false and misleading report on Russia’s invasion of Georgia last August.

The segment featured a Georgian woman, Nino Matkava, who was said to have served on the front lines in South Ossetia. In the report, the Dutch correspondent, Kiesje Hekstra, asserts that Georgian President Saakashvili "started” the war. She adds: "He viewed the war as a game, a game in which Nino and others like her were jeopardizing their lives.”

The report relied on the emotional impact of Ms. Matkava's experience in the war. However, Ms. Matkava was not serving in the Georgian military at the time of the invasion. In fact, she was nowhere near the front lines and thus was in no position to provide any information on the events surrounding the invasion. Ms. Matkava served as a command unit target operator of Georgian Armed Forces and was dismissed on June 12, 2006 due to the violation of the contract conditions. Furthermore, the Dutch broadcast offered no other credible information to back its assertion

The Ambassador of Georgia to the Netherlands has brought these details to the attention of the Dutch broadcaster and formally requested an on-air retraction of the report. The Ambassador also urged the station to investigate how the report came to be aired; it was filed by the station's Moscow correspondent, thus casting doubt on her professionalism as a journalist.

This report is the latest in what appears to be a systematic campaign of disinformation by Russia that aims to manipulate international opinion on the origins of the Russian invasion.

The most egregious falsehood promoted by Moscow—and its initial premise for invading Georgia—was that over 2,100 South Ossetian civilians had been killed by Georgian forces before Russia’s invasion. Just last week, Russia’s own Prosecutor-General, Alexander Bastrykin, "revised” this number down to 162—including civilians on both sides killed before and after the invasion.

Russia has made numerous other efforts to manipulate Western political and public opinion. For instance, the Associated Press reported last month that a supposed South Ossetian NGO activist who had made searing allegations against Georgia was in fact linked to Russian intelligence services. Moscow also has promoted the claims of a former OSCE monitor, Ryan Grist, who asserted Georgian culpability in triggering the August war; however, he himself revealed to the Wall Street Journal last month that his claims had been taken too far and that he had been dismissed from the OSCE for misconduct.

Georgia-US partnership Charter to be signed on January 9

Georgian government will sign strategic partnership charter with the United States on January 9. The document was scheduled to be signed by the sides on January 4; however, the situation in the Middle East made them to postpone the ceremony for a few days, as the Secretary of State had to make a trip to the hottest point of the world.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Georgian Foreign Minister Grigol Vashadze will sign the document soon. Georgian minister Grigol Vashadze and the ambassador Batu Kutelia are already in Washington preparing for the ceremony.
The strategic partnership charter envisages expansion of partnership and cooperation between the two countries in the fields of defense, security, economy, energy, democratic reforms, diplomacy and culture.