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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

World in brief: Saakashvili headed for re-election

The Spokesman-Review

President Mikhail Saakashvili headed for victory in Saturday’s election, according to an exit poll in this former Soviet republic where he is fighting accusations of authoritarian tendencies.

Saakashvili’s supporters waved flags and tooted car horns in the capital after the exit poll showed him winning 53.8 percent of the vote. But the poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points – casting doubt on whether the president would hang onto the absolute majority needed to avoid a runoff.

The opposition called for protests today, claiming the vote was rigged and the exit poll falsified. Saakashvili’s leading challenger, Levan Gachechiladze, received 28.3 percent of the vote, according to the exit poll.

The U.S.-educated Saakashvili led mass street protests that ousted a Communist-era veteran from power following fraudulent elections in late 2003. He won a January 2004 election with more than 96 percent of the vote and set out to transform the bankrupt country into a modern European state.

Now the Rose Revolution hero, who was much lauded in the West, is accused by opponents at home of sidelining his critics and displaying an authoritarian bent.

Vatican City

Prayers urged for priests’ victims

A Vatican cardinal is calling for special prayer sessions worldwide for the victims of sexual abuse by priests.

A letter has been sent to bishops urging them to promote initiatives in their dioceses for special prayers, Cardinal Claudio Hummes said in an interview published in Saturday’s edition of Vatican daily L’Osservatore Romano. He did not indicate when such initiatives might begin.

“There have always been problems because we are all sinners,” said Hummes, who heads the Vatican office overseeing priests worldwide.

“But in these times some truly very grave deeds have come to light,” he said in a reference to the scandals of sexual abuse of minors by clergy.

Many dioceses around the world, particularly in the United States, have been shaken by sex abuse scandals in the last few years.

“Obviously one must always keep in mind that only a minimal part of the clergy has been involved in grave situations,” Hummes said. “Not even 1 percent is involved with problems of moral and sexual conduct.”