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Complied by Liana Bezhanishvili
Wednesday, October 7
Who was shooting at whom in Disevi?

Rezonansi reports that shooting was heard on Saturday in the village of Disevi. According to official information the Ossetian side began shooting at the Georgian position and continued for some minutes. According to the Georgian Ministry of Interior the Georgian side didn’t return fire.

Head of the Shida Kartli regional police Beso Jugheli said “Similar things happen very often on the occupied territory, and then the Georgian side is blamed.” The puppet regime of Tskhinvali has blamed the Georgian military for opening fire, asserting that at 21.45 on Saturday they shot at Disevi from the Georgian-controlled village of Mereti. The Defence Ministry of the de facto regime states that the Ossetian side did not return fire.

State Minister for Reintegration Issues Temur Iakobashvili has accused the Ossetian side of starting the shooting. He said that a domestic confrontation is going on in the occupied territories which frequently results in fire being exchanged between armed groups there.



Freedom Party will decide whether to enter Parliament this week

“We didn’t know whether will we enter Parliament or not yet, as consultations are continuing within the party and Konstantine Gamsakhurdia will be informed of our final decision. We are a political organisation, and the law about reclaiming the seats in Parliament which people refused to take after the last election requires all parties to state their position on this. We have not yet formed ours,” stated leader of the Freedom Party Sandro Bregadze in an interview with Rezonansi.

“There is a probability that we won’t enter Parliament, but our position will be known by the end of this week and then we will make an official statement. If we decide to enter Parliament we will do so based purely on logical arguments. We have to take into account the views of those who voted for the Freedom Party.

“It will be worth entering Parliament if it will help us achieve our goals. We are not going to sit in Parliament for nothing, we will not be one of the branches of the authorities. Freedom will be the real opposition political force.

“I think it was mistake for our elected members not to enter Parliament then. It simply served the authorities’ interests - there were 10-15 distinctly formed leaders among the opposition members who refused to sit, and these 15 people were equal to 100 MPs of the National Party,” stated Bregadze.



Alasania talks about elections and Gamkrelidze

“We should realise that the opportunities to settle the conflict by military force are exhausted. It was only ever an illusion… The only way forward is to find a peaceful way to live together with the Abkhazians and Ossetians in the European security zone. This is a long-term plan but the only alternative for settling the conflict. The report of the mission should not become grounds for the unconstitutional removal of the Government of Georgia’”, Irakli Alasania, Leader of the Alliance for Georgia, has stated in an interview with Akhali Taoba.

“The Government’s only reason for satisfaction with the report might be the objective evaluations of Russian operations last August it contains. The report is tough on Moscow. But Saakashvili’s decision is also negatively evaluated. The report is disastrous for the President’s international image, but it is objective for Georgia. I am very sorry that he does not have any moral authority among the people as that is the greatest problem for a leader,” Alasania said.

“It was the right decision to jointly fight to change the electoral environment. I have never heard that it was the wrong decision. We have concrete candidates for the Mayoral and City Council elections. We are ready to hold consultations concerning these candidates with the other political forces. Contesting these elections is the only right way to change the Government without damaging the interests of the country,” Alasania said.

Alasania denied that David Gamkrelidze was offended by his decision to nominate Sozar Subari as the Alliance’s candidate for leader of Tbilisi City Council.