The opposition candidate in the South Ossetian presidential elections, Alla Dzhioyeva, who claims to have won the November 27 runoff vote that was later annulled, said on Thursday no agreement has been reached with the authorities.
“Talks are over for today. No agreements have been reached. Consultations will be continued tomorrow,” Dzhioyeva said.
Earlier on Thursday, she demanded that outgoing President Eduard Kokoity cancel the Supreme Court’s decision to invalidate the election results and refrain from scheduling a new vote.
South Ossetia’s Supreme Court on Tuesday declared null and void the outcome of the November 27 election because of violations. But Dzhioyeva declared herself the republic’s president in defiance of the court ruling, which bars her from running in a repeat election slated for March 25, 2012.
A RIA Novosti correspondent reported from the site that some 1,000 Dzhioyeva supporters planned to rally round the clock in front of the government building. Three tents and a mobile kitchen have appeared on the central square.
Dzhioyeva said she did not plan to urge restraint on supporters who gathered to rally on Tskhinvali’s central square, saying she was not responsible for their actions. Earlier in the day, she had called on them to go home.
Both Dzhioyeva and the region’s emergencies minister Anatoly Bibilov, seen as Moscow’s favored candidate, claim to have won Sunday’s runoff vote, although no official result has been announced.
The Russian Foreign Ministry recognized the annulment of the polls, calling on all South Ossetian political forces to respect the Supreme Court’s decision. The ministry also said Russia would not interfere in South Ossetia’s domestic affairs.
