Bidzina Ivanishvili, leader of the opposition coalition Georgian Dream, said that a spontaneous protest rally last night in downtown Tbilisi was society’s “very healthy” reaction to televised videos showing inhuman treatment of prisoners, but also called to avoid “unplanned” rallies.

A protest rally is ongoing outside the government’s office in downtown Tbilisi demanding resignation of Interior Minister Bacho Akhalaia; Justice Minister Zurab Adeishvili and Chief Prosecutor Murtaz Zodelava.

“Georgian population had a very healthy reaction yesterday… but I want to call on them not to start unplanned rallies and not to do what the Georgian authorities are expecting from the very first day after I came into politics,” Ivanishvili said.

“We should manage to reach the elections in an organized manner, without much emotion and to change these authorities through the elections,” he said.

“On October 1 we will bring maximum number of people to vote and nothing will prevent our victory,” Ivanishvili said.

Referring to videos showing prisoners abuse, he said: “I knew very well that we had such violent authorities.”

He said that even those prison officials who were seen in videos mistreating inmates were the victims of “Saakashvili’s violence.”

“They employ such people, who will fulfill such tasks. Many people cannot do such things; a healthy person cannot do what you have seen in footage,” he said.