Saakashvili Urges Media not to Stress Ethnic Origins of Suspects

Civil Georgia, Georgia
July 27 2005

Saakashvili Urges Media not to Stress Ethnic Origins of Criminal
Suspects

President Saakashvili said on July 26 that it is inadmissible to
make focus on ethnic origins of the criminal suspects, who have been
recently arrested for Bush grenade incident and Gori car bomb
explosion.

`Media often speaks about Armenian origins [of Vladimer Arutunian,
who is suspected in Bush grenade incident] and about the fact that
the grenade was Armenian-made. The same is about those terrorists,
who were behind explosion in Gori [suspects are ethnic Ossetians].
There is no need to stressing their ethnic origins,’ Saakashvili said
while addressing Georgian policemen on July 26.

Saakashvili said the Georgian citizens are different not by their
ethnicity, but by the way they serve their country.