Georgian police clear protesters challenging stolen election

 Police in Georgia have clashed with demonstrators in the centre of the capital Tbilisi protesting against last month’s disputed election which they say was stolen by the government.

The protesters had set up tents and barriers at a major junction near Tbilisi State University and security and riot police detained a number of people as they moved in to clear the area.

Georgia’s pro-Western opposi­tion accuses the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party of using voter intimidation and fraud to win last month’s parliamentary elections.

Georgian Dream denies rigging the vote. The result has been rub­ber-stamped by the central election commission even though it was not corroborated by Western poll­ing groups.

The European Union and US have backed opposition calls for an investigation into the 26 October election which was seen in Georgia as a choice between a future within the European Union or a return to Russia’s orbit.

After years of increasingly authoritarian rule under Georgian Dream, it was widely considered the most crucial vote since Geor­gians backed independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.

Tens of thousands of Georgians had already taken to the streets to protest against the disputed result, but the election commission’s decision on Saturday to confirm the ruling party’s victory prompt­ed further demonstrations in the centre of the capital.

The commission said GD had won 53.9 per cent of the vote and 89 seats in the 150-seat parliament.

—BBC

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