Opposition Calls President to Meet Hunger Strikers

(Tbilisi, July 24, 2003, Civil Georgia) – Opposition National Movement party called the President Shevardnadze to meet with the hunger striker MPs demanding from the government to cover the pension backlog.

At the Parliamentary session on July 23 members of the National Movement faction said that the hunger strikers state of health aggravates and called the President to meet the protesters and convince them to cease the hunger strike.

Five MPs from the National Movement party started hunger strike on July 16 in the Justice Ministry demanding enforcement of court’s ruling over repaymen!
t of the pension debt.

Under initiative of the National Movement, the local pensioners of Samtredia and Kutaisi sued the government for unpaid pensions for years 1998-2000. In April the court ruled in favor of the claimant and ordered the United Social Security Fund and the Finance Ministry to repay 364 000 Lari in total (approximately USD 170 000).