Some more notes on the current opposition protests here in Tbilisi, from my regular column in The Moscow Times:Easter in Georgia: a time for church and family, not radical politics. Most of the opposition protesters who’ve been blockading the main street of the capital outside parliament for several days went home for the weekend, although they left their barricades in place to indicate that they had only taken a brief holiday from their efforts to oust President Mikheil Saakashvili.
In the shadow of the egg-shaped glass dome which crowns Saakashvili’s ostentatious official residence, a few bedraggled activists took shelter from afternoon showers in mock prison cells which were set up to highlight their allegation that Georgia has become a ‘police state’. Nearby, security police in black ski masks prowled restlessly, on guard against any attempt to breach the gates. But in no genuine police state would protesters be permitted to hang posters insulting their country’s leader on the fence outside his office.
Graffiti spraypainted around the presidential residence describes Saakashvili as a “frightened rabbit”; in recent days, rebel satirists have also been throwing carrots, cabbages, and even an unfortunate bunny over the fence (see photo above). But the protest crowds have been shrinking, unable so far to capitalise on discontent about Georgia’s defeat in last year’s war with Russia and the alleged authoritarianism of the administration. Officials say they’ll allow peaceful rallies to continue as proof of the country’s democratic vitality, and to show that they’re not running scared.
Almost inevitably, however, there have been some unpleasant incidents. There was a late-night altercation between protesters and street cleaners after the trashing of computers at an opposition HQ and the mysterious disappearance of a Pampers nappy which had been attached to a big teddy bear supposed to represent Saakashvili. Civil-rights campaigners also claim that unidentified men in luxury vehicles have been intimidating and brutalising young demonstrators after dark; although the police insist they’ve been investigating every violation, however minor.
Then there was the arrest of a Russian activist from the pro-Kremlin ‘Nashi’ youth movement, who had been hoping to bring his comrades to Tbilisi to join the protests, despite the fact that no one here wanted their support. The deluded lad was shown on Georgian television confessing that the young Russians were to be accompanied by gunmen who would open fire when they reached Georgian territory. He later insisted he was forced to say this under duress, but he must surely have known that Putin fans aren’t exactly popular in Tbilisi, even among Saakashvili’s detractors, and the most they could ever have hoped for was a good kicking and a safe escort to the border.
In the shadow of the egg-shaped glass dome which crowns Saakashvili’s ostentatious official residence, a few bedraggled activists took shelter from afternoon showers in mock prison cells which were set up to highlight their allegation that Georgia has become a ‘police state’. Nearby, security police in black ski masks prowled restlessly, on guard against any attempt to breach the gates. But in no genuine police state would protesters be permitted to hang posters insulting their country’s leader on the fence outside his office.
Graffiti spraypainted around the presidential residence describes Saakashvili as a “frightened rabbit”; in recent days, rebel satirists have also been throwing carrots, cabbages, and even an unfortunate bunny over the fence (see photo above). But the protest crowds have been shrinking, unable so far to capitalise on discontent about Georgia’s defeat in last year’s war with Russia and the alleged authoritarianism of the administration. Officials say they’ll allow peaceful rallies to continue as proof of the country’s democratic vitality, and to show that they’re not running scared.
Almost inevitably, however, there have been some unpleasant incidents. There was a late-night altercation between protesters and street cleaners after the trashing of computers at an opposition HQ and the mysterious disappearance of a Pampers nappy which had been attached to a big teddy bear supposed to represent Saakashvili. Civil-rights campaigners also claim that unidentified men in luxury vehicles have been intimidating and brutalising young demonstrators after dark; although the police insist they’ve been investigating every violation, however minor.
Then there was the arrest of a Russian activist from the pro-Kremlin ‘Nashi’ youth movement, who had been hoping to bring his comrades to Tbilisi to join the protests, despite the fact that no one here wanted their support. The deluded lad was shown on Georgian television confessing that the young Russians were to be accompanied by gunmen who would open fire when they reached Georgian territory. He later insisted he was forced to say this under duress, but he must surely have known that Putin fans aren’t exactly popular in Tbilisi, even among Saakashvili’s detractors, and the most they could ever have hoped for was a good kicking and a safe escort to the border.
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