Senior MP Downplays Protest Rally

Givi Targamadze, a lawmaker from the ruling party who chairs parliamentary committee for defense and security, said there was no reason to pay much attention to ongoing protest rally outside the parliament.

When asked by a Rustavi 2 TV reporter what should be a solution to the current standoff, MP Targamadze responded: ?There is not need for any solution; we should only continue doing our job.?

?There were standing only, maximum, 25,000 people at the rally. Later the number has decreased to 8,000,? he said. ?By saying this I am not downplaying importance of an opinion of these 25,000 people. But it really makes no difference for those people when elections are held, in April, or in autumn.?

These remarks reflect a view widespread among the ruling party officials, at least, expressed through their public statements.

Parliamentary Chairperson, Nino Burjanadze, also said after talks with the opposition leaders that she did not believe that elections date was a priority for many people protesting outside the parliament. The ruling party officials say that the opposition parties are just trying to capitalize on discontent existing on one part of population.

Opposition leaders have claimed over 100,000 people were gathered at the protest rally outside the parliament on November 2; other estimates varied from at least 50,000 to 70,000.

As expected, number of protesters has decreased significantly by the end of the day; however, opposition has vowed to continue protests unless the President Saakashvili meets all of their four demands:

? Holding of parliamentary elections in spring 2008, instead of late next year;
? Creation of new election administrations with representatives from political parties;
? Change of the current majoritarian election system ? a first-past-the-post, ?winner takes all? system;
? Release of ?political prisoners? and ?prisoners of conscience,? referring to Irakli Batiashvili.