In Georgia, students demand to depoliticize students' self-government

On March 16 in Tbilisi, students from various universities held a protest action, demanding the de-politicization of the bodies of students' self-government and reduction of tuition fees.

According to their story, the bodies of students' self-government are staffed with activists of the ruling party "United National Movement".

"Based on the fact that self-governments are under the leadership of the ruling party, they become sources of conflict with those students who have different political orientations," said Otar Lordkipanidze, a member of the Association of Independent Students.

According to the protesters, the fight that occurred at the Tbilisi State University (TSU) on March 14 between members of the students' self-government and ordinary students was caused by the criticism of the self-government in the blogs. As a result of the fight, one of the students – Zviad Mamporiya – has suffered, the "News-Georgia" reports.

The students have also demanded that the Ministry of Education has allocated money from the state budget for higher education and made it accessible to young people; while the best students should be trained for free – as the form of encouragement, the "Georgia Online" reports.