Ribbon tied around a tree at the protest venue outside the public broadcaster’s office reads: “We will win! Misha will go!”, May 24. Photo: Guram Muradov/Civil.ge

Nino Burjanadze, ex-parliamentary speaker and a key figure behind the street protests, said that the Georgian Party’s withdrawal from the ongoing rallies “brought a negative impulse”.

She told a small rally outside the public broadcaster’s headquarters late on Tuesday afternoon, that despite all the difficulties the People’s Assembly remained committed to its plans and would rally on May 25 on Freedom Square.

Burjanadze called on the people to join the rally and said that those, who would “show indifference” by not joining the rally would amount to “a bigger crime” than those committed by President Saakashvili.
 
“Get out of your dens; it is a shame for a Georgian to hide in a den,” Burjanadze said.

Protesters rally outside the public broadcaster’s office on the Kostava Street, where traffic remains blocked for the fourth day on May 24. Photo: Guram Muradov/Civil.ge

She again slammed some of the leaders of the Georgian Party, in particular Irakli Okruashvili and Erosi Kitsmarishvili. She said, that ex-defense minister, Irakli Okruashvili, who contrary to his earlier pledge, dropped plans to return back to Georgia, “is more coward than Saakashvili.” She also said that both Kitsmarishvili and Okruashvili “are playing the authorities’ game.”

Burjanadze, however, did not attack other leaders of the Georgian Party, in particular Levan Gachechiladze and Sozar Subari. Later on May 24, Levan Gachechiladze arrived at a protest venue outside the public broadcaster’s office and said that although the Georgian Party was not an organizer of the rally he could not stay aside was there in his individual capacity. The Georgian Party said in its statement earlier on May 24, that its activists were free to decide themselves whether to join or not the ongoing rally and the one planned by the People’s Assembly on May 25 on Freedom Square.

She again repeated her earlier remarks that failed to receive a response from the Georgian Party what the Okruashvili’s plans were when he was announcing about intention to return back to Georgia.
 
Burjanadze said that the People’s Assembly made it clear from the very beginning to the Georgian Party that it would not take part in any process “if Okruashvili’s return to Georgia was linked with Russians or with destabilization and use of force.”