Georgian Parliament Vice Speaker: UNM’s role in organising violent rally exposes involvement in attempted coup

Nino Tsilosani, an MP for the ruling Georgian Dream party and Vice Speaker of the Georgian Parliament, on Tuesday said the October 4 violent rally was orchestrated by the United National Movement, once again highlighting the role of each member of this “criminal party” in the attempted coup.

“It is a fact that the UNM was involved in planning the events of October 4 in various ways - at the very least, it supported them”, the Parliament official said.

“However, the fact that the United National Movement itself organised this violent rally once again shows the role of each member of this criminal party in the attempt to overthrow the government”, Tsilosani concluded.

Two audio recordings allegedly capturing a conversation between the Georgian opposition leader Paata Burchuladze and Bacho Akhalaia - the architect of the repressive machinery of the former United National Movement regime - have surfaced, generating significant public and political reaction in Georgia.

Regarding the possible links between the organisers of the October 4 coup attempt and Bacho Akhalaia, Paata Burchuladze declined to answer investigators’ questions, while Murtaz Zodelava stated that he would not testify against himself.