Even when Rustaveli Prospekt isn't full of demonstrators, the Georgian capital's main avenue is a lesson in the country's politics.
Sleek Mercedes and battered, coughing Russian Ladas tear along the six-lane boulevard, unhampered by traffic lights or crosswalks. Pedestrians hover anxiously at the curb, scuttling across when they dare. Often they end up trapped on the narrow divider, as cars bear down on them from two directions.
The bold and the fleet eventually make it. The infirm don't even try, forced to hike a quarter-mile out of their way to one of the few underground crossings, unlighted passages flanked by beggars and famished dogs.
In the 12 years since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Georgia's road from communism has been treacherous. Some clever and, in many cases, unscrupulous people have profited, while the rest of the country's 5 million citizens drifted into poverty, unemployment and discontent.
Resentment over Georgia's deterioration has erupted into weeks of protests and fears of a return to the 1991-1992 bloodshed that accompanied the ouster of Zviad Gamskhurdia, the country's first president.
Eduard Shevardnadze, who replaced Gamskhurdia, was expected by many to bring stability. They remembered his astuteness as Soviet foreign minister in 1989, when he saw that anti-communist sentiment in the Soviet satellite states couldn't be contained.
But if he was able to read the handwriting on the wall in Eastern Europe, he couldn't when it was written in his own language.
Shevardnadze had been under pressure by the US and other Western countries to hold free and fair parliamentary elections. Yet he didn't exert sufficient effort to control local officials who flagrantly stuffed ballot boxes in Nov. 2 elections, says a Western diplomat. Then, the diplomat says, the Georgian leader was surprised by the sharp criticism from the West.
Election observers say the violations weren't only on the pro-government side. Like the drivers and pedestrians on Rustaveli Prospekt, each faction in Georgia is largely out for its own gain, more interested in power than in ideology, the diplomat says.
Soso Leparidze, huddled on a chair next to the small rack of books he sells on Rustaveli Prospekt, agrees.
Gesturing at the parliament building a block away, he asserts, "Ever since 1991, it's been them and us -- the politicians are separated from the people."
It should have been different for Georgia, he says, echoing a common complaint that officials have squandered the nation's potential. "We had everything here: nature, culture, but now ..." He broke off and drew a finger across his throat.
There are many in Georgia who officially make even less, yet somehow live better. Corruption is endemic. In the watchdog group Transparency International's annual survey of how corrupt countries are believed to be, only five of 133 scored worse than Georgia.
"The police make 150 lari (US$75) a month, and drive home in German cars. How?" Leparidze asks.
For most Georgians, daily life is a grind of trying to find ways of earning a legitimate living and maintaining a little dignity.
The crowds of demonstrators along Rustaveli have changed over the past week -- from anti-Shevardnadze protesters, to others who revere Gamskhurdia, to supporters of a party run by a regional strong man. But a constant has been the old women sitting hunched in front of parliament, selling paper cones full of dried seeds, a popular snack, for a few cents.
"I get a pension of 14 lari (US$7) a month; it's absurd," 70-year-old Eteri Kheladze says angrily, then smiles and pulls back her wrinkled coat to show a colorful scarf. "But I still try to be fashionable."
BACKLASH: The National Party quit its decades-long partnership with the Liberal Party after their election loss to center-left Labor, which won a historic third term Australia’s National Party has split from its conservative coalition partner of more than 60 years, the Liberal Party, citing policy differences over renewable energy and after a resounding loss at a national election this month. “Its time to have a break,” Nationals leader David Littleproud told reporters yesterday. The split shows the pressure on Australia’s conservative parties after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s center-left Labor party won a historic second term in the May 3 election, powered by a voter backlash against US President Donald Trump’s policies. Under the long-standing partnership in state and federal politics, the Liberal and National coalition had shared power
A Croatian town has come up with a novel solution to solve the issue of working parents when there are no public childcare spaces available: pay grandparents to do it. Samobor, near the capital, Zagreb, has become the first in the country to run a “Grandmother-Grandfather Service,” which pays 360 euros (US$400) a month per child. The scheme allows grandparents to top up their pension, but the authorities also hope it will boost family ties and tackle social isolation as the population ages. “The benefits are multiple,” Samobor Mayor Petra Skrobot told reporters. “Pensions are rather low and for parents it is sometimes
CONTROVERSY: During the performance of Israel’s entrant Yuval Raphael’s song ‘New Day Will Rise,’ loud whistles were heard and two people tried to get on stage Austria’s JJ yesterday won the Eurovision Song Contest, with his operatic song Wasted Love triumphing at the world’s biggest live music television event. After votes from national juries around Europe and viewers from across the continent and beyond, JJ gave Austria its first victory since bearded drag performer Conchita Wurst’s 2014 triumph. After the nail-biting drama as the votes were revealed running into yesterday morning, Austria finished with 436 points, ahead of Israel — whose participation drew protests — on 357 and Estonia on 356. “Thank you to you, Europe, for making my dreams come true,” 24-year-old countertenor JJ, whose
Two people died and 19 others were injured after a Mexican Navy training ship hit the Brooklyn Bridge, New York City Mayor Eric Adams said yesterday. The ship snapped all three of its masts as it collided with the New York City landmark late on Saturday, while onlookers enjoying the balmy spring evening watched in horror. “At this time, of the 277 on board, 19 sustained injuries, 2 of which remain in critical condition, and 2 more have sadly passed away from their injuries,” Adams posted on X. Footage shared online showed the Mexican Navy ship Cuauhtemoc, its sails furled
RSS