Nino Burjanadze, a former parliamentary speaker and leader of Democratic Movement-United Georgia party, has strongly rejected the notion of her being a radical opposition figure.

“My statements are not radical; my statements are adequate,” she said while speaking at the Tbilisi-based Kavkasia TV’s talks how on May 13.

“I would have been radical if I called for hanging Saakashvili,” she added.

In separate remarks made later on the same day in another Tbilisi-based television station, Maestro, Burjanadze said that the opposition would have been radical if it had “kicked out” the authorities from their offices. 

Earlier on May 13, Nino Burjanadze reiterated that she did not believe that negotiations with President would bring any results and said that “more vigorous actions” on the part of the opposition were required to mount more pressure on the authorities.
 
Some other leaders, however, said that opposition should use the opportunity of talks with the authorities. Irakli Alasania, the leader of Alliance for Georgia, is the most vocal advocate of this approach. He said in BBC’s HARDtalk on May 12, that he believed that “if the negotiations continue we will be able to achieve some grounds for compromise.”

“If anyone – whether it is Mr. Alasania or anyone else – manages to convince Saakashvili to resign at the negotiating table, I will be the first to praise that person,” Burjanadze said.

The opposition leaders acknowledge differences on the tactic, but they have downplayed it by saying that they remained united on key issue – need for President Saakashvili’s resignation. Irakli Alasania also said on May 13 that no one had dropped demands for early presidential and parliamentary elections.