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People hold Georgian national flags as they gather in central Gori - Source: Reuters -
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Western envoys condemned a fake news report in Georgia that
Russian tanks had entered the capital, wading into a row that has
exposed deep divisions over opposition attempts to mend ties with
Moscow.
Saturday's 20-minute primetime report on pro-government Imedi TV
caused panic 18 months after the ex-Soviet neighbours fought a
five-day war.
Shock has given way to accusation over the politics behind the
broadcast, which Imedi said was a warning over contacts between
opposition leaders and Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
EU special envoy to the South Caucasus Peter Semneby said the stunt
did not help stability in Georgia and the region.
"It seems to have created further internal political divisions. It
may even have been intended to do so," he said.
Georgia holds local elections in May watched as a barometer of
support for authorities under President Mikheil Saakashvili.
The opposition said the government was behind the report on Imedi,
which is run by a close ally of Saakashvili.
The president's spokeswoman said the accusation was absurd.
But state manipulation of media remains a serious concern for
Georgia's Western backers.
Meetings between Putin and Saakashvili defectors Nino Burjanadze
and Zurab Nogaideli have fuelled debate over Russia's intentions
and whether Georgia should seek to mend relations with its northern
neighbour.
Political terror
Ordinary Georgians, many of whom have relatives in Russia, are
suffering from severed diplomatic relations, closed air links and
an effective Russian trade embargo.
Georgia's government says Russia cannot be trusted.
The Kremlin says it wants nothing to do with Saakashvili, whose assault on rebel South Ossetia in August 2008 after clashes with separatists drew a crushing Russian counterstrike.
The fake broadcast, which ran without a banner to make clear it
was not real, said Russian tanks were advancing on Tbilisi after
Burjanadze and Nogaideli called on Moscow to intervene in political
unrest following the mayoral vote.
Mobile phone networks crashed and there was a spike in calls to the
emergency services.
Saakashvili criticised how the report was presented but said it was
not unrealistic.
But US ambassador to Georgia John Bass slammed the stunt.
The situation between Georgia and Russia is serious enough without
this sort of sensational quasi-news activity and I look forward to
the examination of what happened by the appropriate organisations,
he said.
Russia envoy to NATO Dmitry Rogozin said Saakashvili must have
known about the report.
"It's a well-planned act aimed at scheming new armed conflicts in
the Caucasus region," he said.
Imedi was pro-opposition until police stormed its studios in 2007
at the height of opposition protests, deepening concern over media
freedom and marginalisation of the opposition under Saakashvili
since the 2003 Rose Revolution swept him to power.
"This is a continuation of the political terror in Georgia aimed at
burying the opposition," Nogaideli said.
