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Issue # 1410  13 May 2009
Georgia
The roses have wilted
In early April thousands of Georgians rallied on the streets of the capital, Tbilisi demanding the resignation of President Michael Saakashvili.
It’s been a long-planned action by a rather fractured opposition in Georgia. It is united by one thing only – the wish to see the president go. Many in the opposition used to be Saakashvili’s loyal supporters and helped to bring him to power in 2003 in the heady days of well-staged Rose Revolution.
The roses have long wilted – in 2007 when the first mass actions were taken against Saakashvili they were brutally crushed by riot police. Saakashvili is blamed for the dire state of the economy. He is also paying the price for the role he played in provoking a war with Russia last year which led to South Ossetia and Abkhazia declaring independence. Thousands of people had to flee their homes as a result.
This year’s protest actions started off peacefully enough but violent confrontation did take place last week. The Special Forces used rubber bullets to subdue the protesters. Several were detained and severely beaten. The Patriarch of Georgia had to intervene to stop the carnage. The situation is extremely volatile at the moment – there does not seem to be a way out which suits both sides. The opposition called on Saakashvili’s allies in the United States and Europe not to intervene to protect him.
As all these domestic problems are being played out, NATO started its military exercises in Georgia on May 6. The timing and the location of the exercises caused obvious consequences in relations between Russia and NATO. The Deputy Prime Minister of South Ossetia pointed out that “this step [military exercises] is being deliberately made to destabilise the situation in the Caucasus. Last year, Georgia attacked South Ossetia after similar military exercises had taken place in the country. A part of NATO’s military hardware, which was delivered for the exercises, was left in Georgia…
“Seven countries, including Kazakhstan, Armenia, Moldavia and Serbia refused to take part in the exercises after Russia set out its negative attitude to them.”
Russia expressed its opposition to NATO’s actions and called them “provocative”. 
Next article — Japanese Communist Party enjoys upsurge
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