Interior Ministry explains ‘presence of ambassadors’ in parliament during June 20 rally dispersal

The Georgian Interior Ministry has provided an explanation of the Interior Minister Giorgi Gakharia’s statements made yesterday that he watched the storm on the Georgian parliament building on June 20 with foreign ambassadors, from the parliament building of Georgia.

• Interior Minister says opposition provoked unrest, then fled scene, abandoned people

The opposition interpreted the statement that Gakharia ‘tried to also shift the responsibility of the dispersal onto the ambassadors and complicate relations between Georgia and its western allies.’

Rallies were sparked in Tbilisi after a Russian MP occupied a seat of the Georgian parliamentary speaker on June 20, during an international, religious forum. Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge.

Deputy Interior Minister Nino Javakhadze said that only the German ambassador Hubert Knirsch was in the building on June 20.

We were in telephone contact with other ambassadors after the situation got tense. It was natural, as the ambassadors were interested in the developments in central Tbilisi. The minister meant this and not that several ambassadors were present in the parliament building,” Javakhadze said.

The German ambassador confirmed his presence in parliament, adding that he was only watched the situation as decisions in such situations are made by the government.

Gakharia spoke about the June 20 rally dispersal to TV channel Pirveli yesterday.