Georgian NGOs hold protest against eviction of refugees

Today, a protest action "I am also a refugee" was held in front of the residence of the Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili in Tbilisi. The protesters demanded to fulfil a pre-election campaign promise of the President that all internally displaced persons (IDPs) living in the Georgian capital, would become residents of Tbilisi.

"The President of Georgia has not fulfilled his promise; the IDPs are being daily evicted from the capital. These people demand accommodation in a place where they could find jobs. They demand the basic conditions of life or the possibility to return to places where they lived for many years," said Alexander Shalamberidze, one of the organizers of the protest rally, an ex-member of the oppositional "People’s Party".

He said that the protest rally was symbolic in nature and, therefore, it was attended not only by IDPs, but also other residents of the capital, the "News-Georgia" reports.

The IDPs and the entire society should become active with the aim of urging the authorities to fulfil their demands, stated in turn Lasha Chkhartishvili, a representative of the Conservative Party, one of the organizers of the protest rally.

According to Maya Kharadze, a representative of the "Resistance movement", next week a similar protest rally will be held at the UN Office in Georgia, the "Georgia Online" reports.