About 7,000 opposition supporters rally in Georgian capital

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
About 7,000 opposition protesters rallied in the Georgian capital Sunday to put pressure on President Mikhail Saakashvili in the runup to parliamentary elections in May. The demonstrators, gathering in front of the parliament building, accused Saakashvili of stealing the Jan. 5 presidential election in which he won a second term with 53 percent of the votes. They also denounced what opposition leaders described as government control over media and demanded fair access to television. The opposition claims Saakashvili surpassed the 50 percent threshold needed for outright victory only by fraud, and want him to face a runoff against opposition leader Levan Gachechiladze, who officially won about 25 percent of the vote.