Expatriates Join Protest in Tbilisi
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| Protest rally in Hamburg. Photo provided by the orginizers of rally |
Up to 60 Georgians currently living in Hamburg rallied on November 12 to protest against the mass ballot fraud.
“Like many Georgians, we also looked with hope to the November 2 elections. We closely watch the current events in Georgia and are well informed about the numerous violations, that took place during the elections,” Tea Daraselia, participant of a protest rally in Hamburg told Civil Georgia.
“With this rally I and my friends wanted to join those Georgians who are protesting in Tbilisi against the ballot fraud. On the other hand we wanted to attract the German society’s attention on the current events in Georgia,” Tea Daraselia added.
Film director Dito Tsintsadze, whose film Gun-Shy has recently won the 51st San Sebastian International Film Festival golden award, lives in Germany for many years already. He could not participate in the protest rally in Hamburg, as he lives in Berlin.
“We, all the members of my family, went to the Georgian embassy here in Berlin to cast the ballot, with the hope that elections would bring changes. But what the authorities did [with out vote] was a disgrace. I was humiliated. What I want now is to come to Tbilisi and stand right beside the people protesting on the Rustaveli Avenue,” Dito Tsintsadze told Civil Georgia in the phone conversation.
The protest rallies in support of the demonstrators in Tbilisi will be held in New York and London on November 16 as well.
Vasili Rukhadze, Georgian community activist in New York, says that the protest rally will take place in front of the United Nations headquarters.
“Rally is not organized by any political party or group and does not express the interests of any political party or group,” Vasili Rukhadze says.
He said that the rally expresses the protest of America’s Georgian community, against the election fraud, “carried by the government of Georgia.”
“Protestors demand the election results to be announced null and void and new, fair and free elections to be held. Otherwise rally demands the resignation of president Shevardnadze,” he said.
Sixty Georgians living in the United States have already signed an open letter, sent to President Shevardnadze on November 14, urging for investigation of the ballot frauds.
“Mr. Shevardnadze, you and your government are morally responsible for the failure to ensure democratic elections.” the letter reads.
“We demand that Mr. Shevardnadze not take any violent actions against the peaceful rallies in Tbilisi of the people who want fair elections, a better future, and democracy for all. We demand that the irregularities that took place during the elections and afterwards be immediately investigated, and those people who have participated and violated the law, either directly or indirectly, be brought to justice. If our demands are ignored we demand that you and the members of your government immediately resign and new elections be held as soon as possible,” the letter reads.
On November 13 Civil Georgia received an e-mail from the Georgian citizen currently living in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. “Unfortunately a very small Georgian community here in Dubai has no chance to rally, as here is quiet different situation, rather than in Europe or America. But I, and my friends join the protest which is expressed by the people standing at the Parliament building in Tbilisi and by those Georgians living abroad,” Giorgi from Dubai says.
This is the first case when the developments here in Georgia were so actively voiced by the small communities of Georgians living abroad.