Opposition leaders could not agree for awhile whether the resignation of President Mikheil Saakashvili should be openly demanded and how bloodshed could be avoided in this case.
"On behalf of the people, we have decided to demand the resignation of the Georgian president," said Gachechiladze, a member of parliament. "Our struggle will be short but will last long enough for Georgia to bid farewell to Saakashvili."
About 10,000 opposition supporters, far fewer than Friday, gathered in front of parliament Saturday. The protesters demanded early parliamentary elections next spring, the release of political prisoners and new election procedures. The authorities agreed to discuss election procedures only.
Before the opposition announced its decision to seek Saakashvili's resignation, representatives of the parliamentary majority and the opposition met in Tbilisi with Terry Davis, secretary general of the Council of Europe.
Giorgi Bokeriya, a leader of the ruling party, said, "The opposition wants Terry Davis to share the responsibility for the president's resignation and early elections. It is absurd. The people of Georgia must decide their fate themselves."
Davis in turn said the ongoing protests in Tbilisi were a sign of well-advanced democracy.
