18:17, 31 March 2004

Adjarian leader considers Georgian parliamentary elections rigged

The head of Georgia's Adjarian autonomy, Aslan Abashidze, has stated that the central authorities of Georgia deliberately rigged the March 28 elections for the national parliament.

According to him, the decision by the Georgian authorities to conduct preliminary registration of voters led to the reduction in the number of voters in Adjaria.

The official statement by Aslan Abashidze received by the Interfax news agency on the night of March 31 reads that 273,431 voters were registered in the Adjarian Autonomous Republic, however only 130 thousand (47.5% of the total number) were given an opportunity to vote as only 130 thousand preliminary registration forms had been delivered to Adjaria.

Editors note: See also the article "Only two parties proceed to Georgian parliament, according to latest data".

Source: Interfax News Agency