After the political turbulences of May, Georgia is entering a relatively calm period: usually, the political activities of all groups of citizens drop in summer. However, the summer heat is unlikely to be the only reason for this ‘dead calm after a storm’. Only a few days have passed since the tragic events that led to the deaths of several rally participants, however, the leaders of the Georgian opposition are not calling on their supporters to protest the government’s actions. Even those of them who only recently promised to ‘struggle to the end’ now remain silent. The authorities, in their turn, didn’t introduce a martial law act like in 2007, so rallies are not officially forbidden.
Officially, the latest rally was broken up by the police to free Rustaveli Avenue for the 20th Independence Anniversary parade. Now, after the end of the festivities, the Tbilisi mayor's office states that the opposition is free to pursue further mass gatherings. Moreover, on May 27-28 human rights activists organized a demonstration on the very same spot, on Rustaveli Avenue near the Parliament, where a ‘popular gathering’ of the opposition had taken place the day before, on May 26. And the human rights activists’ action attracted a far greater number of people than the opposition’s rally. Is it possible that the opposition leaders are not trying to organize yet another demonstration simply because they understand that they have failed miserably?
According to the official data, 4 people lost their lives in the events following the rally. Eyewitnesses report that one of Nino Burjanadze’s escort cars deliberately ran over a police cordon, killing one policeman and one participant of the rally and injuring many others. Burjanadze and her elder son left the scene just before the event. The police followed their car to the territory of Czech Republic’s embassy, where opposition activists opened fire on the police. After their arrest, the Georgian authorities had to offer their apologies to the Czech government.
While inappropriate use of force by the Tbilisi police towards the participants of the rally is inexcusable, this aggressive behaviour by the opposition leader might have contributed greatly to the police’s extremely harsh treatment of the protestors. It is a proven fact that the deaths of all 4 protestors were not a direct result of actions taken by the police. Apart from the two people who were run over by Burjanadze’s escort jeep, two others died of an electric shock while hiding from the police on a store roof. It’s most likely that the authorities gave the police orders not only to break up the rally, but also to arrest its most active participants to prevent them from resuming the demonstration in some other part of the city.
Why did the authorities choose to implement force, when in 2009 they tolerated active opposition demonstrations for three months? Because in 2009 all the demonstrations were of a purely peaceful nature, while this time the protesters held clubs and shouted promises to turn to the paths of Egypt and Libya.
Nino Burjanadze claims that the protestors had no aggressive intentions and that they had no Molotov cocktails in their possession. However, none of the opposition leaders could explain bottles of gasoline found by the police on the square. 162 participants of the rally were arrested, with most of them having already been sentenced to 3 months suspended arrest. Three people who attacked a police car on May 22, as well as the drivers of the cars that inflicted injuries resulting in deaths, will receive more severe
punishment.
Another 24 people were arrested in a Tbilisi suburb: the police claim they were preparing to take part in street shootouts if they were to occur. The authorities claim that this group was receiving instructions directly from Moscow by Georgian exiled and prosecuted politicians. However, no one has yet jumped to blaming Russian authorities. The police found evidence that the plotters were connected to the ‘people’s gathering’ and to Nino Burjanadze’s husband, Bari Bitsadze, the official leader of opposition’s ‘fighting group’ called Shepitsuli. He himself disappeared on May 25, apparently fleeing arrest.
The Prosecutor General’s office instituted proceedings against Mr Bitsadze for organizing a group of people to oppose police forces. Nino Burjanadze herself surprised the press by repudiating her husband
and refusing to pay the bail for him. The opposition’s hope of Western support also failed: the attempts to
provoke the president into use of force were far too evident. Saakashvili couldn’t let the opposition rally ruin the Independence Day parade and demonstrate his political weakness.
Foreign governments reacted with restraint: they condemned the use of force but apparently recognized the aggressive nature of the opposition’s actions. Only a few days after the events on Rustaveli Avenue President Saakashvili was invited to a prestigious international event – the 150th anniversary of Italy’s creation. The opposition lost the battle not only to the police, but to the political strength of Saakashvili’s administration. And Saakashvili’s position for future elections was even strengthened by discrediting
his political rivals.
The main reason for Burjanadze’s failure is a lack of public support – only some 3,000 came to support her. If there were at least 20,000 the authorities wouldn’t dare to use force. Burjanadze was one of the most active participants of the ‘Rose revolution’, so the people naturally believe that she is as responsible as Mr Saakashvili for all its negative effects. It doesn’t mean that Georgia has no opposition potential, it means that the opposition should be headed by a leader not compromised by their past.
Georgy Kalatozishvili, Tbilisi. Exclusively to VK.
