Georgians demonstrate against Saakashvili regime

This video is called McCain ‘s Protégé Georgian Dictator Saakashvili Continues Policy of Political Repressions.

From the Georgian International Media Centre:

Situation in Tbilisi tense as Okruashvili pledges to return to Georgia this week

Submitted by georgiamedia on Sun, 22/05/2011 – 15:13

A second day of public protest in Tbilisi, Georgia‘s capital, has seen the number of demonstrators sharply down on yesterday, when tens of thousands thronged in the central Freedom Square, but has also seen growing tension between the demonstrators and the police with both sides accusing the other of provoking violence.

Yesterday’s demonstrations were the first of the scheduled protests by the “People’s Assembly”, an umbrella group closely associated with Nino Burjanadze, the leader of the Democratic Movement and a former parliamentary speaker, and acting Georgian president.

This week a rival opposition grouping, the Georgian Party, is also to take to streets and one of its most prominent leaders, former defence minister Irakli Okruashvili, has pledged to return to the country for the first of their rallies on 25 May.

Okrusashvili is in exile, with assylum granted, in France and has been sentenced to prison in absentia by the Georgian courts. If he managed to get into the country – and plainly turning up at the airport in Tbilisi does not seem like a viable option – then he could turn into a rallying point, as he was once seen as a rival to Saakashvili in looks, vigour and rhetorical power.

However he also is tainted by his role in the most brutal period of Saakashvili’s presidency and was seen to be a leading advocate of even more harsh policies towards South Ossetia and Abkhazia and is unlikely to appeal to many of Saakashvili’s more liberal critics.

It is not the first time he has pledged to come back to Georgia, or named a time frame. But it is the first time he has given a specific date.

According to Dutch NOS TV:

The opposition has called for big demonstrations later today. The parties say that Saaskashvili has dictatorial traits and has destroyed the economy.

Georgia opposition protests enter third day: Demonstrators accuse Mikheil Saakashvili, the president, of authoritarianism: here.